


Mahora's Leaf

by Redhazard



Category: Mahou Sensei Negima!, Naruto
Genre: Crossover, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-01
Updated: 2017-02-07
Packaged: 2018-05-10 19:35:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 42,120
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5598217
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Redhazard/pseuds/Redhazard
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Negi travels to Japan and Nekane cannot help but be worried. Meanwhile, the newest Hokage is hopelessly bored. An innocent mission request will have big consequences on Mahora.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Request

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Negima and I'm not making any money of this.

 

 

xXx

**Mahora's Leaf**

**Prologue: The Request**

xXx

_Has the monotony of life gotten to you? Do you wish for something new? A change of scenery like none other?_

_Mundus Magicus has grown stale! Mundus Vetus, too restrictive. The less said of the Demon World the better. You need something new!_

_Travel to the Elemental Nations!_

_Enjoy this peaceful world. Travel through the lush forests of the Fire Country. Climb the highest Mountains and explore the deepest caverns in the Earth Country._

_Take a dip in the sea! Visit the Land of Water._

_Go to Lighting Country, home of famous rapper Killer Bee whose hit album Longhorn has sold out in all worlds!_

_The Elemental Countries are waiting for you!_

_Call now!_

_-Advertisement from the Five Elements Travel Agency-_

xXx

An angry scream broke the silence in a small house of Wales.

"I can't believe this!" Anya Cocolova shrieked as she furiously paced around the room.

"What idiot thought this was a good idea," She said, full of righteous indignation. "He is ten. He is wimpy, a shrimp. Him? A teacher? I pity the students!"

Nekane Springfield merely watched with a patient smile on her face as the girl ranted. She was already used to this scene. It had happened every night since Negi's assignment had been revealed.

"I know you are worried," Nekane said, ignoring the embarrassed denials those words prompted, "but everything will be fine. The headmaster of the school is an old friend of The Magus. Negi will be taken care of."

It was the same thing she told Anya every night, and just like every night, it did nothing to quell the worries in the young girl's mind.

"T-that's not the point! He is a kid, a kid! There is no way he is responsible enough to live on his own," the girl said, completely ignoring the same could be said of her.

"Plus," the girl went on, "I have been doing research on Japan."

Nekane blinked. This part was new.

"Did you know it has one of the highest human to non-human ratios in the entire world?"

"Well, that's…" Nekane began nervously. She had known that. She had just hoped Anya wouldn't find out.

The girl kept going not giving Nekane an opportunity to think of an excuse. "There is also a huge amount of demons sealed there. Tons of them. Really nasty ones at that."

"Well, those are-"

"They have killer robots!" Anya shouted, throwing her hands into the air. "What if Negi ends in a class with a robot?"

As a robot, Chachamaru did not have any sneeze protocols. Nevertheless, sneeze she did. She recorded the phenomenon in her database and made a mental note to ask Hakase about it during her next check-up.

Back in Wales, Nekane sweatdropped. "I don't think that's something we need to worry about."

Anya went on as though she had not heard her. "The humans are dangerous too. There are supernatural high school students and magical girls! Plus, half-demons that look like humans, but they are only waiting for an idiot to lower his guard and–"

"Anya," Nekane said, softly but firmly. She gently grabbed the girl's shoulders. "Negi is going to be fine. Mahora is a safe place. There are special barriers around the city that protect the school from outside forces."

They also kept many demons sealed, but Nekane was not going to share that particular detail with Anya.

"But what if they aren't from outside? What if Negi ends up in a class filled with supernatural students?"

"Don't say things like that. I am sure Negi will have wonderful, normal students."

"But-"

"No buts," Nekane said firmly and Anya knew the conversation was over.

"It's getting late. Let's get you to bed," Nekane said as she led Anya to her room.

Inwardly, Nekane congratulated herself. There had not been any sign of falsehood on her face during their talk. Given the type of school Mahora was, chances were most of Negi's students would not fit into any definition of normal.

Nekane knew and accepted that. Mahora was far from the only school that taught magic in secret.

It was normal even.

Not dangerous at all.

Nekane sighed and rubbed her temples after tucking in Anya.

The girl's words had awakened old memories. Negi was not the fist mage to go to Japan. She recalled a group of her classmates had ended there as part of their training. The stories they had brought back had been quite…disturbing: people under ancient Chinese curses, aliens, random monsters looking for "Heart Crystals" whatever that was.

She had not given it much thought at the time. Surely, they were exaggerating their experience.

Right?

Perhaps it was silly to let Anya's tales rattle her, but Negi was far too important.

That night Nekane decided to write an important letter.

She needed to call a professional.

xXx

Uzumaki Naruto was the Sixth Hokage.

During the Fourth Ninja War, he had fought against Akatsuki and stopped the Moon's Eye plan, bringing peace to the land. His deeds in the war earned him fame and the respect of many. When the time came for Tsunade to retire, he was the natural choice.

Two years had gone by since then.

Naruto was the Hokage, respected and loved by all.

He was also quite bored.

The days of fighting between ninja villages were long gone. There were still some old grudges. Years of fighting did not go away so easily, but the efforts during the war had laid the foundations for peace. Under the rule of the five Kage, the relationships between villages had improved drastically.

It was great.

If maybe a little too boring.

War was bad. Naruto had learned that through firsthand experience, but too much peace left him with little to do.

What happened to the awesome ninja battles?

Even before he became Hokage, and thus doomed to a life of paperwork and diplomatic meetings, the missions he had taken after the war had been too easy.

Uzumaki Naruto had become too strong.

Few people could give him a good fight and those who could were not always up for a friendly spar. Oonoki frequently cited back problems. Even before he retired and left the Hat to his son.

There was Killer Bee, but the Raikage had forbidden his brother from ever sparring with Naruto again.

Apparently the Raikage had liked that mountain range.

As for Sasuke… well, there was more than one problem there.

The lack of a good fight was almost enough to make him miss the Akatsuki.

Almost.

Naruto enjoyed peace as much as the next guy and maybe more, but he needed some action. If there was one downside to being a Hokage it was the need to sit in his office for most of the day, taking care of the paperwork.

A Hokage was not supposed to take missions. He was supposed to stay in the village and keep order. He created and implemented policy. Even his mere presence served a purpose.

However, Uzumaki Naruto needed ways to entertain himself.

So... he improvised.

If a particular mission request happened to catch his eye, well, no one could blame him if he deemed it important enough to check it out in person.

For the safety of the village and all.

He just had to make sure to leave a few shadow clones behind so no one would notice he was gone. He was pretty Shikamaru would not see things his way. Party pooper.

Today a highly unusual mission had arrived to his office. Naruto idly toyed with the request form. The job itself was hardly unusual. One Nekane Springfield requested a bodyguard for her cousin. It was a simple enough job.

But it came from the Old World.

There was more than one world. That was one piece of knowledge Jiraiya had made sure to drill into his head.

Their world was just one of many. In theory, there were hundreds and maybe even thousands of different worlds out there. No one had ever traveled enough to know for sure.

Even a man like Jiraya only knew of a few worlds, the so-called Old World among them.

It had the distinction of being one of the few worlds in constant contact with another world, Mundus Magicus.

The Magic World.

Every year many people traveled to and from the Magic World to the Old World.

As a rule, ninja did not make a habit of travelling to other worlds. They knew they were there but they had no reason to involve themselves in their affairs. They had enough troubles as it was.

Until recently at least.

Peace, while good, had rather negative effects on the number of missions they received.

The Old World and the Magic World provided a nice supply of customers while the villages recovered from the war and adjusted to their new circumstances.

Which meant they received missions like this now.

Naruto idly toyed with the request. A burst of wind chakra sent it flying around his office like a paper plane.

As far as decisions went, this wasn't a hard one.

A hand seal and a few clones later, Naruto disappeared from his office.

xXx

"…and that's why I am going to need you to give me a job where I can keep track of Negi," the ninja finished cheerfully.

Konoe Konoemon was used to surprises. He was Mahora's headmaster. Impervious to surprise was a requirement for his job (It really was). He had seen almost everything.

A ninja from the Elemental Countries suddenly dropping into his office was certainly new. Not surprising but new.

Konoemon had been doing some light paperwork when the young man had come into his office with a document signed by Nekane Springfield and began to tell his story.

The fact that he had managed to sneak through all his security was more than a little impressive.

He would have to verify the young man's identity of course, but Konoemon would be lying if he said he had not expected this. Nekane Springfield would hardly be the first worried guardian he had to deal with. As a matter of fact, there were currently forty-seven students in Mahora who had special bodyguards hired by their guardians watching over them, his granddaughter included.

"Uzumaki-san," he began, "I trust you understand teaching here is important for Negi's training."

"Yeah, I got the gist of it," Naruto said, waving a hand. "Last stage of training to get some real world experience and all, right? I know how that goes. Don't worry, as long as it doesn't directly threaten his life, I don't plan to interfere."

Unless it looked like fun.

But saying that would not make a good first impression.

The aged headmaster ran his fingers through his long beard. "That would be for the best."

It really would. The Thousand Master had many enemies. One more set of eyes could not hurt.

"Would you be okay with a teaching position?" He asked, placing both elbows on his desk.

Naruto blinked. "Don't I need a license for that? I had expected a janitor job or something."

"You have nothing to worry about. The PE teacher had an accident recently and has decided to retire. Who better to replace him than a ninja?" Konoemon asked with full honesty.

"True," Naruto said.

There was something to be said about the common sense of the people in the room.

"Very well, you will start next week. The paperwork should be done by then," Konoemon said, smiling.

"Just like that?"

"You are hardly the first unexpected visitor Mahora has to accommodate," Konoemon replied. "It has become a tradition of sorts by now."

"Cool!" Naruto said, smiling. The old man was alright. Now, he just had one last thing to take care of.

"By the way, do you know any good ramen places? Running all the way from Wales made me hungry."

Konoemon stared.

"…I… would recommend Chaoi Bao Zi. It has a wonderful cook," Konoemon said with barely a hint of surprise on his voice.

"Thanks, gramps!" The ninja shouted, waving as he walked out of the room, through the door this time.

Konoemon sighed. He had not expected this addition to young Negi's training.

Who would have thought the latest Hokage would be playing bodyguard?

He was no fool. He kept himself informed even on the affairs of other worlds. The age of the new Hokage was no secret and the power he had felt coming from the young ninja, although hidden, had been the real deal.

It may be an assumption at this point, but he would bet all his money on it.

In the past, Konoemon had the fortune of meeting the Third Hokage. The old ninja had radiated competence and wisdom. He was exactly what one would expect from the leader of a ninja village.

The young Uzumaki was different. There was a sense of lightness around him, quite the contrast to the older Sarutobi, yet Konoemon could see the steel behind those eyes.

It looked like things in Mahora were going to get even more interesting.

 

 

xXx

Prologue: End

xXx

  
**Glossary**

**Mundus Vetus** also known as the Old/Real World. It is the world where Negi and the rest live in. It is the normal world. The old world is also the birthplace of humans.

**Mundus Magicus** is the Magic World. Mundus Magicus is an alternate space on Mars. Sometime in the past humans migrated to this world and settled there. Unlike in the Old World, magic is common knowledge there.

Then there's the **Ninja World** , more commonly known as the **Elemental Nations** (not everyone can have a fancy Latin name). This is where the tale of Naruto takes place. Some crossovers like to have the Naruto world be inside the real world, but I decided to use separate dimensions for the purpose of this fic The details of Ninja Dimensional Travel will be revealed as the story goes along.

 


	2. Meet the Teacher

Disclaimer: Naruto and Negima are not owned by me.

 

 

xXx

**Chapter 1: Meet the Teacher**

xXx

_Boss,_

_It is as you suspected. Five Elementals Travel Agency is secretly managed by ninja._

_If there is any motive other than money, it is lost on me. To all appearances, it is just a travel agency and a damn good one at that. I cannot recall the last time I had a trip this good._

_I can confirm what previous reports stated. This world is at peace. There has not been any major conflict in over a year. The reason remains unknown._

_Additionally, I regret to inform you I was unable to procure a copy of Longhorn._

_My apologies. I am aware of how much you were looking forward to it._

_-From the Desk of Kurt Godel-_

xXx

Naruto ate ramen atop of a building.

That's what cool ninjas did.

Maybe not the ramen part (weirdos), but ninja liked to use tall buildings to look over the city, preferably with the full moon in the background.

The afternoon sun would have to do for Naruto.

Naruto let out a content sigh after making short work of the ramen. He had to admit Konoemon had good taste. The ramen was good. Not Ichiraku good, but few things were.

"Man, this place is nice," Naruto said, placing the empty bowl beside him.

Despite being such a large city, Mahora had a homely feel to it. The buildings were not as big as the ones in Tokyo or even some cities back in the Elemental Countries. Instead, Mahora had plenty of small buildings and houses with plenty of open space in between.

Also, it had a giant tree. Couldn't forget that part.

"Weird," Naruto said.

Then again, the Hokage Mountain in Konoha probably looked weird to outsiders so maybe he shouldn't talk

Naruto smiled and closed his eyes, enjoying the wind against his skin. He let a few moments pass, before opening one eye.

"So how long are you going to stay silent over there?" He asked.

The small ermine who had been in the process of quietly sneaking out of Naruto's backpack froze in his tracks. A strong hand the grabbed him by the tail and lifted him up.

"…eh, hi?" Chamo tried once he was face to face with Naruto.

This had so not been part of the plan.

It was simple. It came to him the moment he had seen the guy come into Nekane's house. A brilliant idea only his genius mind could conceive!

Hitch a ride in the ninja's backpack.

Chamo had been planning on going to Japan. The ermine needed a way to escape the punishment for his many underwear thefts. Plus, Negi was his bro! You didn't leave a bro alone.

Especially when he was living in such a good hiding place.

Hitching a ride with the ninja had seemed a much easier and safer alternative to Chamo than traveling on his own.

What could possibly go wrong with that?

Being caught apparently.

"Who are you and why did you sneak in there?" Naruto asked, studying the little creature.

Naruto was mostly curious. The ermine was hardly a threat. He did not even sense any ill intent from him. Otherwise, he would have never let the animal sneak into his backpack in the first place.

Chamo gulped.

"Eh… that is…."

Naruto tilted his head to the side. "Yes?"

Chamo gulped as a kunai appeared in the blonde's hand. This was not good at all!

_Calm down, Albert Chamomile. You can do this!_

Mustering his confidence, Chamo began to tell his story.

He told Naruto the sorrowful tale of a lone ermine, and of the catastrophe that had claimed the lives of his parents. The ermine went through life experiencing loss after loss. In his darkest hour, a lone kid had helped the dashingly handsome and clever hero. How else could the awesome protagonist repay the kid but by swearing to stick with him till his dying day?

It was a heartbreaking story.

Most of it was a complete lie.

"…and that's why I am here," Chamo said, as he looked at the setting sun in just the right way, a tear trailing down his cheek.

Man, he probably looked awesome right now.

Naruto let out an impressed whistle. "You know, I got to hand it to you. Most people would stop after the death of the parents, but you went all the way and killed your adoptive parents too."

Chamo did not do things halfway.

"I am guessing the part where you are Negi's familiar is true at least, right?"

Chamo nodded, annoyed the ninja had not even pretended to buy his story, but grateful the kunai in his hand had disappeared. "Yes, I have been at Aniki's side since he was five years old. How could I leave him without my support now? This Albert Chamomile will do his best for Negi!"

Said best included helping Negi make lots of provisional contracts in order to become filthy rich.

Naruto rubbed his chin.

"Well, I suppose that's alright." It was training but there was nothing wrong with the kid getting help from his partner.

He had always enjoyed summoning Gamahiro during his spars with Jiraiya.

The look on the old pervert's face the first time he had summoned the giant toad on top of him had been priceless.

_Food Cart Destroyer_ was such an awesome Jutsu.

"There is just one thing," Naruto said as the thought struck him. "I can't have Negi knowing about me being his bodyguard. Promise to keep quiet about that, okay?"

"Sure thing, bro," The ermine replied crossing his fingers behind his back, an impressive feat for an ermine.

"…You are lying to me, aren't you?"

Chamo started to sweat. "What? Of course n-arrhg!"

As Chamo tried to figure out what had happened to his tongue Naruto put back the small brush that had suddenly appeared in his hand back in his backpack.

The ermine was unable to see it but his tongue now sported an inky black symbol.

And the old pervert said he would never be good with seals.

"Yeah, that will do," Naruto said satisfied with his work, before letting go of the ermine.

"What was that for?" The ermine asked.

"Eh, just a minor seal," Naruto explained. "You won't be able to talk about me until I release it. Don't try washing it off. It won't work. Besides, the ink will vanish in a minute or so."

With that said the blonde ninja vanished in a whirlwind of leaves leaving Chamo alone in the rooftop.

It occurred to Chamo he did not like ninja very much.

xXx

Today was proving to be a bad day for Negi Springfield.

And it had been such a nice week too!

He was getting to know his students. Plus, his relationship with Asuna was no longer antagonistic. They had even gotten to the point where he could say they were friends. Asuna would not admit it, but she was stubborn like that.

It was slow progress but progress all the same.

Then his students had an argument with some high school girls and he had failed to stop it. Had Takahata not been there, he didn't know what would have happened.

It was a sobering reminder. He still had ways to go as a teacher.

If only that had been the end of that.

The P.E. teacher in charge of that class had been unable to attend and Negi had to fill in for him. Using the court right next to the middle school dorm had not been his idea, but he had been unable to stop the Saint Ursula students.

Predictably another fight with 2-A had started.

The Dodgeball game should have solved things. A friendly game was just what the girls needed. It would allow them to work out their aggression in a safe way.

Negi should have known better. He really should have.

Not even a full minute later, Negi was set to be the prize for the victor, and the girls of 2-A with Asuna and Ayaka leading them were glaring daggers at the high school girls.

"Girls maybe it would be better if we-"

"Negi-sensei, rest assured this Yukihiro Ayaka will not let them have even a single hair of your head," the blonde class rep declared, cutting off Negi's objection.

"Damn right!" Asuna said, in a rare moment of agreement with her rival. "Don't worry Negi. We got this."

"Then it's agreed!"

Faster than Negi could voice his many objections with the game (starting with the fact that he was sure that teaching arrangements did not work that way) a loud voice boomed through the field.

Negi sighed. Today was definitely not a good day.

"Who the hell are you?" Asuna asked as everyone turned towards the source of the voice.

The child teacher looked at the new arrival. He was a young man with blond hair and blue eyes. He was wearing a black tracksuit with orange lines running along the sleeves.

"Isn't that obvious?" The man said with a grin on his face. "I am going to be the referee!"

"What gives you the authority? This is a private game," one of the high school girls said. Murmurs of agreement rose from both sides of the court.

The blonde laughed. "What give me the authority? Listen and listen well. The name is Uzumaki Naruto and starting next term I will be working as PE teacher here at Mahora!"

"There is no way. You are too-" Asuna immediately stopped what she was about to say.

Naruto gave her an amused look. "You weren't about to say, 'you are too young to be a teacher', right?"

Asuna tried really hard not to look at Negi.

She tried.

"… No."

Naruto smiled.

"Good, because you'd have looked really silly if you did," Naruto said, earning a glare from Asuna. "That's right I am your teacher! In fact, I'm the best damn PE teacher in the whole world."

Konoemon had it right. Who better than a ninja to teach PE?

"It is not like you can ask your homeroom teacher to be the referee. That wouldn't be fair to the other class," Naruto added.

"I-I woul- I would n-never," Negi said or tried to at any rate. A reassuring hand on his shoulder stopped his spluttering. The child teacher looked up to find Naruto right next to him.

Most of the students were left wondering how he had gotten there without anyone seeing him move. A few recognized the sudden movement for what it was and were now quite interested in the new teacher.

"You are one serious kid," Naruto said with a smile. "Sorry, I didn't mean to imply you would be unfair. It's just a formality for these things."

"How?" Asuna asked with a slight twitch in her eyebrow. "How did you move all the way there?!"

"Best. PE Teacher. In. The World. 10 meters in 10 seconds or less is nothing," Naruto said, not bothering to mention he could go way faster. "We went over this already."

"Isn't that more like a world class athlete?" One of the students commented.

"Anyway," he said, ignoring them, "non-players get out of the court. The game is about to start."

Moments later the girls were facing each other on the court, and Negi had somehow ended up as a player. The middle school side had double the players as previously agreed. On the sidelines, a green haired girl who was obviously a robot had gotten her hands on some fireworks and three class cheerleaders were shaking their pompoms.

With a blow from Naruto's whistle the game started.

The high school class students began their attack and… gently threw the ball at class 3-A.

Bop.

Bop.

Bop.

"Three out," Naruto called as the ball bounced from head to head.

Then it happened again.

"Four out," Naruto said. Only now were the girls starting to realize their large numbers put them at a distinct disadvantage during dodge-ball.

"Hold it! Isn't this situation unfair? With our numbers we can barely move around," Asuna said, realizing they had been tricked when they accepted having a team with twice the amount of members.

"I must agree with Asuna, Uzumaki-sensei. The conditions of the match are hardly fair," the class representative added.

Naruto looked at the girls and asked himself one very simple question, a question that would shape his teaching style in the months to come.

What would Kakashi do?

"The number of people on each team was something both sides agreed on. I will allow it."

"But they tricked us!" Asuna said.

"Yeah, and you failed to realize it in time," Naruto replied. "You were okay with it when you thought it gave you an unfair advantage."

"Yes, but that…I mean," Asuna struggled to come up with an answer.

"Already complaining?" the leader of the high school team, a pretty black haired girl, asked mockingly. "I shouldn't be surprised. After all, you are just brats."

Asuna's eyebrow twitched. That did it. She had it with those snobby upperclassmen. She threw the ball at the leader with all her considerable strength.

Only to watch as the girl casually caught it with one hand.

"No way!"

"Asuna lost?"

"And she even threw it with full Baka Power."

"Who the hell has Baka Power!" yelled Asuna, face lit up with an angry flush. Sure, she may not be the best when it came to exams, but that didn't mean she was an idiot who only had brawn.

She wasn't!

Really.

"What a sad team," the enemy leader said. "Still, the difference in our strength is nothing to be surprised about. It is not like you had any chance of winning to begin with."

With a snap of her fingers, her classmates strung into action. School uniforms were discarded and thrown to the wind, prompting Makie to cover Negi's eyes.

No need for their cute, impressionable teacher to see high school girls exposing themselves.

However, the high school girls had not suddenly decided to strip. They were wearing dodgeball uniforms underneath.

"Behold! Kanto's Regional Dodgeball Champions, Mahora's Black Lilies!" They declared as one.

The announcement left class 2-A in shock. What type of high school students participated in Dodgeball tournaments? Were there even high school Dodgeball tournaments to begin with?

At least, most of them were thinking that. Others like Negi were clapping, impressed.

"Wait, isn't this definitely unfair now?" one the girls from 2-A asked Naruto.

"Unfair? This was a match between middle school and high school from the start. Does it matter if you find out the opponent was stronger than you thought? You should have expected this! Instead, you all took the world of Dodgeball too lightly and now you're paying for it!" Naruto said, pointing with excessive pomp.

Dodgeball was serious business.

With their objections ignored, the game went on. It was not even a contest. The Black Lilies gained a wide lead and eliminated the leaders of Class 2-A: Asuna and Ayaka.

The game would have ended right then and there had it not been for Negi. The young boy's speech managed to restore the girl's spirits. Naruto's estimation of him went up a few notches.

"I see you don't know when to give up," the high school captain said. "Shouldn't you understand this already? From the beginning, it was useless for you middle-schoolers to try to fight us."

"Five-second rule," a blue-haired girl said from the sidelines. "According to the rulebook, it is forbidden to hold the ball for more than five seconds. Please hand over the ball."

"How would an amateur like you even know that?" one of the high school girls protested.

"I-I always carry a compilation rulebook with me," the girl said shyly.

A brunette with her hair done in Chinese style buns laughed. "Way to go Honya!"

"Taking advantage of the rules to make up for lack of skill… underhanded, but I'll allow it!" Naruto said giving her thumbs up, ignoring the girl's sputtered denials.

The ball was back in 2-A's hands and their counterattack…

…

Their counterattack was definitely not Dodgeball. The ball was kicked, dunked, and grabbed by a ribbon.

A blonde haired, dark-skinned girl even managed to pull off an overhead kick. Soccer fans all over the world would have cheered.

"Out, out and yeah that's pretty much it. Game over," Naruto said.

"Wait a second," one of the girls protested, "no matter how you look at it, that was definitely not Dodgeball. Isn't that against the rules?"

It was a bit of a gray area actually.

"Against the rules? Isn't that a way of blaming your lack of skill. As Kanto's regional champions shouldn't you have won even with the way they were playing?" Naruto asked.

The girl flinched.

"Well… yeah but-"

"But you took them too lightly. Learn from it. Victory of this match goes to Class 2-A!" Inwardly, Naruto cheered himself. He probably looked really cool now.

Indeed, the girls backed down after that.

Most of them backed down at least.

The leader was quite angry and threw a ball at Asuna's back only for Negi to intervene. The teacher managed to stop the ball and threw it right back at the girls.

With a little extra.

As soon as the girls touched the ball their clothes were torn to shreds.

Naruto deduced that was probably magic and also noted that Eiko's lacy, black underwear was considerably more daring than that of her classmates.

Ninja had keen observation powers.

As Negi was lifted in the air and congratulated by his students on his 'super shot', Naruto decided to retreat for now.

He already had a good grasp on the kid's personality.

Negi was the overly serious type. A worrywart. Like a younger Ebisu. Only popular.

Naruto grinned.

Negi felt a chill go up his spine.

xXx

Later in the day, Negi, Asuna and Konoka returned to their home. Class 2-A was easily excitable and the girls had thrown a victory celebration at Chao's restaurant.

Free of charge of course, much to Chao's chagrin.

"Negi," Asuna began.

"Yes?"

"That weirdo. You really don't know anything about him?" the girl asked.

"Nothing," the child teacher answered. "I was not informed about any new teacher, but I am also new at Mahora so that may be the reason."

The comment earned an angry sigh from Asuna.

The mysterious new teacher had been a topic of discussion at the party, mainly his looks. The girls were happy there was new eye candy around. After all, not all of them were "old-men-obsessed perverts" as Misa had eloquently put.

Not all of them had been talking about his looks. A few of the students had realized the new teacher was not normal and wondered what his purpose was.

Then there was Asuna. As a devoted lover of old men, she was not swayed by the blonde ninja's good looks and she did not have the skill to recognize a badass ninja when she saw one just yet. She knew one thing, though.

"I don't trust that guy," the girl said. There was something about him. She just couldn't put her finger on it.

"I don't know," Konoka commented. "He seems like a cheerful person."

"Don't let that fool you," Asuna said with force. "Something's not right with that guy. He's like…like a fox."

An idiot's instinct was a frightening thing.

"Asuna-san, you are overthinking things. I am sure the Principal would not have hired him if he was not trustworthy," Negi said, trying to pacify her

Konoka let out a small giggle. "I wouldn't know about that. Grandpa does have weird tastes."

"Yeah, look who he put as our homeroom teacher," Asuna said dryly.

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

xXx

In a secret underground lab, another student of Class 2-A contemplated her own worries about the newest addition to the faculty. In her case, the root of her concern was not grounded on simple instinct but facts.

Uzumaki Naruto, Sixth Hokage, was at Mahora.

Chao Lingshen prided herself on being a calm, rational person. It was one of the reasons she could face Negi Springfield every morning, in spite of growing up hearing all the things he had done and how great he had been.

No, Negi Springfield was not just great, he was legendary.

A small part of her even considered the idea of going against him laughable.

However, reason triumphed.

She knew that was not the case. She knew Negi was only a kid at this point in time. He had not yet done all the things that made him a legend. That was why she could go on with her plan.

She could simply treat him as another mage-in-training, albeit a talented one.

Uzumaki was different.

Records of his time in the Elemental Countries were sketchy at best and the long-lived bastard had never really bothered to give her exact dates when he told her stories. There was only one thing she knew for certain.

He was strong.

People did not become Kage by collecting bottle caps.

Chao sighed and reclined her body against her chair. Uzumaki's arrival complicated things, but that did not mean she would give up. She could not back down under any circumstances.

There was too much at stake.

She had plans to make.

xXx

Meet the Teacher: End

xXx

 

**Chapter Glossary**

**Summoning: Food Cart Destroyer –** Using a standard Summoning, the user of this technique summons a giant creature _above_ his enemy. The ensuing fall is destructive to say the least.

**Longhorn –** Killer Bee's hit single. It is said you cannot be a true fan of him unless you have this. However, finding it is quite hard and the pre-order list is really long, much to Godel's chagrin.

Don't forget to review! Your feedback helps me get better, which means you get a better story to read.


	3. Two Months

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

xXx

_...Space-Time Jutsu are a strange beast. The essence of it all is rather simple. You open a hole in reality in order to connect two distinct points. Any idiot with enough chakra and access to a summoning contract can do it._

_I was a teenager when I signed the Toad scroll. It took me a less than a day to summon my first tadpole. A few months later I fought alongside 'Bunta for the first time._

_I didn't understand how the whole thing worked until years later, most people never bother learning. It's not like there are many experts on the subject around._

_But I am getting off-topic._

_Make a hole to connect two points. That's what it boils down to. That's what all space-time techniques boil down to._

_The problem is... people can get really creative with just that much..._

_-Jiraya's Notes, Excerpt-_

xXx

**Two Months**

xXx

In the second month of the new term, Naruto was called to Konoemon's office.

The aged headmaster did not even bat an eye when Naruto appeared in his office out of thin air. The blond ninja had done that every time he was called. No whirlwind of leaves. No gust of wind. One moment there was an empty seat, the next Naruto was there. Rather than speed, Konoemon was certain it was spatial displacement of some type.

The young Kage had certainly earned his title.

"Morning gramps," Naruto said, raising a hand in greeting. He was never one for formality, and Konoemon had no problems with that.

"Good morning to you too, Uzumaki-san," Konoemon greeted. "Some time has passed since you began teaching here. As such I would like to ask you a few questions about your experience in Mahora so far."

"Sure thing. Fire away," Naruto said, leaning back into his seat.

Konoemon nodded. "Good. First, I must admit I am interested in how you find class 3-A."

Naruto looked confused for a moment before snapping his fingers.

"Right, your granddaughter is there! I have to say they are a fun bunch though Negi must have his hands full handling them. As for me well…"

xXx

**1 Month and 26 days ago:**

"You!" Asuna shouted, pointing at the grinning man standing inside the gym.

"Yes, me!" Naruto said, greeting the assembled class. "Welcome, Class 3-A! From today onwards, I, Uzumaki Naruto, will be your P.E. Teacher!"

Asuna had a bad feeling about this.

"Since this is the first day of classes, I am supposed to go over what we will cover during the semester," Naruto said, taking out the syllabus.

"But that's boring." Naruto threw the papers over his shoulder. "Instead, I want to get an idea of how good you girls are. Who is up for running laps around the gym?"

Half of the class did not react to the announcement. The other half was split between resigned expressions and pained groans.

Naruto blinked.

"Hey, what's with those boring reactions? This will be fun!" Naruto assured them. "We are not going to do regular boring laps around the gym. This will be obstacle course!"

The moment he finished the sentence, Naruto stomped, activating a hidden switch in the gym's floor.

_Click_

The sound echoed throughout the gym as various mechanisms were set in motion. Trap doors opened. Walls rose from the floor. Compartments opened up in the ceiling and walls to reveal lasers, crossbows, and other dangerous things.

The students' eyes got progressively wider as they watched the gym undergo the transformation.

By the end, the room was better suited for filming an action movie than a middle school gym class.

"What the hell is this?" Surprisingly it was the normally quiet Chisame who voiced the question in everyone's minds.

"It is the gym's obstacle course!" Naruto said, spreading arms wide.

"How is it even remotely acceptable for something like this to be part of a PE class?!" The girl yelled. Around her several of the girls nodded.

"Eh, don't worry," Naruto said, waving a hand, "there is nothing lethal or harmful in the obstacle course. I even set it on the lowest difficulty. Worst thing you will get are a few bruises."

"IT HAS LASERS!"

"Non-lethal lasers," Naruto corrected, raising a finger. "Besides, it is not like I build this thing. It has always been part of the gym. It was even part of the school curriculum until a decade ago or so. By the way, thanks for the books on the school's history, Miyazaki-san! I would never have found about this without them."

Poor, shy Nodoka found herself victim of several glares. The girl could only stutter explanations while her skin struggled to decide between blushing and paling.

"Okay, that's enough standing around. Everyone form a line. You will enter in pairs," Naruto said, slapping his hands together.

Reluctantly, the girls formed a line, looking very much like prisoners about to face the firing squad.

What followed next was...

"THAT WAS A BOXING GLOVE! WHY DOES AN ARROW HAVE A BOXING GLOVE?"

"…and those lasers really hurt..."

"Don't worry Akira! If we stick together we'll be fine."

"Don't say stuff like that while hiding behind me, Misora!"

"Why can't we be a normal school?!"

"For the pride of the strolling club! CHARGE!"

… A tragedy. Truly a great tragedy.

The class was cut down by half during the first lap alone. By the end of the fifth lap, even members of the sport clubs like Akira and Yuna were unable to go on. Only Mana, Kaede, Ku Fei, Setsuna, and Chachamaru were able to endure the exercise from beginning to end.

News of this event would spread like wildfire around campus. In a few days, people would call it The Great Class 3-A Massacre. Other PE teachers in Mahora would go on to copy Naruto's example and let their classes ran that obstacle course on the first day of class.

It would take more than a hundred years for the school to ban the practice.

But that's another story

xXx

"…we get along well. They are good girls. Most of them are lacking when it comes to physical ability, but don't worry I will shape them up in on time," Naruto promised with a smile.

"You have my thanks for that," Konoemon said. "The physical standards of today are far too low."

"No problem," Naruto said, flashing him a thumbs-up. "I'll have those girls roof-hopping by the end of the semester."

"Ho, I see I made the right choice choosing a ninja as a teacher," Konoemon said while running a hand through his long beard.

Deep down, Konoemon hoped his granddaughter wouldn't hold it against him.

"I am glad you get along well with them, but I must admit I am a little surprised. Has there really been no friction between you and the students?" Konoemon asked.

Naruto cocked his head to the side.

"Well," he said, "there is Evangeline."

"I see," Konoemon said. "I admit she has a… unique situation."

Naruto nodded. "If you hadn't told me about her beforehand, things could have gotten messy…"

xXx

**11 days ago**

Kakizaki Misa was tired.

As a cheerleader, she was used to physical activity but nothing had prepared her for the newest teacher.

Uzumaki Naruto did not know how to take it easy on the students or so Misa thought.

Unbeknownst to her, he was taking it quite easy on them. It was just a matter of perspective. Easy when compared to standard Ninja Academy exercises was still grueling training for a middle school girl.

Normal middle school girls that is, which Misa was.

Having to deal with Naruto-sensei's classes on top of her cheerleader duties had proven to be too much for the girl. She had fallen asleep in the changing room after practice. Being more asleep than awake themselves neither Madoka nor Sakurako had noticed she was not with them on their way to the dorms.

Night had fallen by the time Misa woke up.

Having little choice but to walk alone, Misa took the quickest way to the dorms, right through Sakura Lane. Had she not been so tired, she would have remembered all the rumors about people being attacked there at night and chosen another route.

Alas, that was not the case, so Misa was entirely unprepared when a small figure burst from the shadows and grabbed her. White teeth gleamed in the darkness as the figure prepared to bite her.

Said figure was similarly unprepared for Naruto dropkicking her into the ground.

Misa, who had just started to register what had happened, found herself staring at her PE teacher.

"You okay?" he asked.

Before Misa could answer the figure Naruto had kicked got up, hands covering her face. "How dare you! How dare a mere human like you kick my face!"

"Eva?" Misa asked, straining her eyes to see in the darkness. Sure enough, the mysterious figure was her classmate. "Eva, it is you!"

"Naruto-sensei! How could you hit Eva like that?" Misa pointed to the little girl. "She is a girl! Worse, she has the body of a ten-year-old. Who knows how much you hurt her! And Eva, you are too old to go around scaring people and way too young to be dressing like that. Don't you know there are all sorts of weirdoes out ther-"

"Silence!"

Misa was cut off by Evangeline's shout. The girl threw two oddly shaped bottles to the ground. The liquids inside mixed as the glass shattered. Multiple ice arrows burst from the mix of liquids and headed right for them.

They never touched Misa.

In an instant, she was in Naruto-sensei's arms and they were, for some reason she couldn't understand, on top of one of the surrounding buildings.

"Stay here," Naruto said. "It looks like someone is asking for extra lessons."

Misa started open-mouthed as Naruto vanished from her sight and reappeared back on the street in front on Evangeline.

"You know, I have never met a vampire before," Naruto said.

"So the old man told you," Eva huffed, crossing her arms. "It seems people can't keep a secret nowadays."

Naruto shrugged. "It is the kind of thing that comes up during the job interview. Salary. Hours. Problem kids. The usual. Especially when the problem kids include blood-sucking vampires."

Naruto was pretty sure the headmaster hadn't told Negi a thing, though.

He seemed like the type that liked to mess with others.

"You have me at a disadvantage then, _sensei_ ," Evangeline said, the last word dripping with sarcasm. "I don't know much about you."

"Me? Eh, there is not much to tell," Naruto said, his hands behind him. "Just a normal teacher. Honest."

Eva snorted. "Don't insult me. Those movements were not those of a normal human, and the timing of your arrival at Mahora... Did Konoemon feel the need to hire a babysitter for the brat?"

"Can't I just be a really dedicated PE teacher?" Naruto asked. He seemed to mean the question too.

Eva raised an eyebrow.

"Eh, was worth a shot," Naruto said, shrugging. "Anyway, can't say the name of my client. Ninja rules and all that."

He apparently had little problem revealing he was a ninja.

"No matter," Eva said, pulling out more vials. "After tonight, you will be in no shape to babysit Springfield."

Once more the vampire threw vials containing magical catalysts. A barrage of magical projectiles headed for Naruto.

The ninja calmly stared at the projectiles as they closed in on him.

Then, he _moved_.

To Misa, it was as if each of the projectiles suddenly veered off before reaching Naruto.

"Well, that was… not bad?" Naruto said, scratching the back of his neck. He had been expecting something cooler from his first vampire. Sure, Konoemon had said something about the seal, but this was just… underwhelming given how he had talked about her.

"On the bright side, you are perfect for Negi! Definitely starter villain level," Naruto said, cheering up a bit.

Powerful enough to be a threat, but not strong enough to win unless Negi messed up.

Man, he so wished he had one of those growing up.

Zabuza had so not been starter level.

However, Naruto's words were not well received. Evangeline reeled back as if struck by a physical blow.

"S-Sta-Starter Villain! How dare you! How dare you! Evangeline A.K. McDowell is nothing less than a Final Boss!" The tiny vampire shouted.

"Yeah, sure, whatever," Naruto said, not looking particularly interested. "Look, I know the headmaster is okay with you being here and all, but don't go around attacking people or I'll do something about it, no matter what my contract says."

Having said what he wanted to say, Naruto hopped to the roof. An instant later, he had Misa in his arms and vanished.

Leaving one very pissed off vampire.

"Chachamaru!" The girl shouted.

"Yes, mistress," the gynoid answered as she stepped out of the shadows.

"That guy. He just called me weak, right?"

"That would appear to be the case," the girl answered in monotone.

"Me! The Dark Evangel. The Undying Mage. The Doll Master. The Apostle of Destruction. He said I was nothing more than a starter boss!" The blonde said, her voice getting increasingly louder with each word.

"I believe he used the term 'Starter Villain', Master." Chachamaru tilted her head to the side. Perhaps her master's storage drives were in need of repair?

"I know what he said! It's all the same thing. He compared me to a first level boss battle only an utter noob would mess up. An existence created for the sole purpose of losing to let the player get some experience. A battle so easy it might as well be scripted!"

Eva knew her games. There was only so much one could do while trapped in a school for years.

"Change of plans Chachamaru," she said. "First, I am going to drink that brat's blood. Then I am going to look for Nagi, but before doing that last part…before that… I am going to beat that miserable bastard!"

xXx

The Headmaster stroked his beard. "Ah, Evangeline. I assumed she would start to act up when Negi came to the school. I am surprised it took this long actually."

Naruto crossed his arms behind his head. "Is she going to be any trouble? I know you said students with abilities were common and all, but this one is going around biting people."

"Have no fear," Konoemon said. "She has not seriously hurt anyone and is unlikely to do so. She may deny it, but she has grown fond of Mahora. Her only target is Negi, and even then I doubt she truly seeks to cause harm to the child."

Naruto didn't like the idea of a vampire going around feeding. But the Headmaster seemed sure she was not going to hurt really hurt anyone so…

"I'll trust you about Eva for now. She will be good for Negi as he is right now. I am curious about what he did to have a vampire going after him, though," Naruto said, scratching his chin.

"That's not really my story to tell," Konoemon answered. "Speaking of Negi, I am curious to hear how your mission is going so far."

"Oh, that! Nothing much has happened. The biggest danger to him right now is getting glomped to death by those girls. Can't recall the last time I had a job this easy. By the way, I got to thank you for giving me this job. It makes keeping an eye on Negi much easier…."

xXx

**1 Month and 21 days ago**

"Negi!"

The child teacher did not have time to turn before he felt a hand slapping his shoulder making him stumble a bit.

"Uzumaki-sensei," the child said, recognizing the voice.

Naruto, who now had him in a one-armed hug, pouted. "Hey, what's with the formality? We are both teachers. Don't be scared to use my name."

"But wouldn't that be too informal?" Negi asked. From what he understood of Japanese culture, calling someone by their first name could be rude in certain situations.

Naruto laughed. "Come on, it is not like you are Japanese. Neither am I for the matter. A little informal works out just fine."

Naruto omitted the fact that while not Japanese, the culture of the Elemental Countries resembled that of Japan.

Weird.

"You are a foreigner too, Uzumaki-sensei?" Negi asked surprised.

In retrospect, blond hair and blue eyes were enough of a hint. Then again Ayaka had those and there was not a drop of foreign blood on her veins.

Japan was weird like that.

"Yeah, this is my first time in Japan actually," Naruto said. "And what did I tell you about calling me by my name?"

Negi fidgeted. "...Na..ruto-san," he tried out.

Naruto sighed. "That will have to do for now. You're way too serious for a kid."

"I don't think I am that serious." Negi frowned a bit. The expression just made him look more serious.

"No, you totally are. It's like talking with an old man. You're a kid. You have to relax a little. Relax. Oh! I just had the best idea. It's decided!"

Negi did not like the glint in Naruto's eyes.

"As a teacher, I cannot let this go! From here on, I make it make it my duty to help you recover your lost youth!" Naruto said, doing his best imitation of Gai and Lee.

It would have made them proud.

"Wha-no that's not really necessary," the boy said, waving his arms around.

It was then Negi noticed Naruto had carried him out of the room at some point. They weren't even inside the school anymore. The blond was effortlessly carrying him with one arm and was running so fast their surroundings were nothing more than a blur to Negi.

That day many people heard the disembodied voice of a child screaming.

And so was born the Legend of the Screaming Ghost Child.

Seconds later, Naruto stopped and dropped the screaming kid to the ground. The short fall (and not being carried at speeds not even racing cars could reach) was enough for Negi to settle down. The child looked around and saw that they were in a small ramen bar.

"It's not Chao's food stand, but I have always preferred ramen to nikuman," Naruto said before making his order.

"So what are you going to order? I recommend the Miso ramen, but Shio ramen is pretty good too," Naruto said with the casual tone of someone who had not technically kidnapped a child and dragged him screaming through the streets.

"I shouldn't even be here! I had papers to grade! No, first of all, how did we even get here?" Negi protested.

"Putting off your work for later is another part of youth," Naruto said, sagely. At least, he thought it looked sagely. "As for how I got us here… well, you don't become a PE teacher by sitting around doing nothing. I am in _amazing_ shape."

Negi sighed and took the empty seat next to the blond. He could have tried to convince Naruto to take him back, but something told him that would be an exercise in futility. Instead, he made his order and listened to Uzumaki-sensei talk while they waited for their ramen to arrive.

"This… this is pretty good," he said once his order arrived and he brought the first spoonful of ramen to his mouth.

"Told you. Hey, bring some more," Naruto told the chef while waving an empty ramen bowl.

"W-when did you eve-," Negi stuttered before stopping himself.

"A teacher must be ready to eat in the blink of an eye," Naruto replied.

"I don't really see how that has anything to do with teaching," Negi deadpanned.

"You'd think so, but try saying that when you have to grade the final exams of the entire grade," Naruto said. "Then you will be glad you can to eat faster than humanly possible."

Against his better judgment, Negi found himself in agreement. Grading exams was entirely too time-consuming.

Why did he have to include two composition questions in the last exam?

Hold it.

"Did you say 'will be'?"

"Well yeah, I told you I was going to teach you," Naruto said. "We need to turn that frowny face of your into a smile."

"I don't have a frowny face," Negi muttered with what was totally not a frowny face.

Though his voice was low but Naruto heard him anyway.

"Come on! Young teachers like us have to stick together. We are not the norm. Especially you. I have never heard of a child teacher before. You'd think a ten-year-old qualified to be a teacher would be better known."

"Tha-that's…" Negi stuttered out. It wouldn't do for Naruto to dig into his past.

"Easy there," Naruto said. "I'm not the prying type. I just want to offer a little help."

"Help?"

"You have the face of someone carrying something heavy," Naruto said, his face serious. "That's not healthy for a kid."

"I don't hav-oomph!"

Negi was shut by a spoonful of ramen shoved into his mouth. Courtesy of Naruto.

"It's okay. I am not going to pry. Honest. I just want to help you lighten up in the meantime. If that means kidnapping you for lunch every so often then or teaching you a few tricks then fine. If you need someone to talk to, I'm here for that too."

Negi had many, many objections to Naruto's unilateral decision-making. However, the spoon got in the way of voicing them.

"Well, that's all I wanted to say really," he said as he got up from the chair. "Thanks for the ramen!"

It was then Negi realized Naruto had left him with the bill.

xXx

"…He is a good kid, if a bit too private for his own good," the ninja said. Negi had not taken him up on his offer even once.

Which did not mean, they did not eat lunch together on regular basis. Naruto made sure of that.

The headmaster crossed his arms. "I see. Yes, Negi is not used to opening up to others. He differs greatly from his father in that regard."

"The Thousand Master, right? Must be tough trying to live up to that legacy."

The headmaster nodded. "I see you know about it. Still, Negi's story is not mine to tell."

Naruto just waved his hand. "Don't worry. I won't pry. I am a ninja. I know a thing or two about secrets."

"Thank you. Now, I must tell you-"

"Don't interfere with Negi?" Naruto interrupted him. "Yeah, I know that part. I wasn't planning to."

"I did say that at the beginning, but you must be wary of Evangeline."

"…I am getting some mixed signals here."

"Allow me to explain. The current Evangeline would be, as you say, a good challenge for Negi. However, she was not always like that. As I have told you, her real power is sealed. While it is not too likely to happen…" The headmaster trailed off, letting Naruto fill the blanks.

"So don't interfere unless the vampire regains her original powers. Got it."

Konoemon nodded. "Once again, you have my gratitude."

"Just doing my job. Now if that's all, I'm going to take off. Thanks for the tea gramps!" Naruto said, getting up.

"There is one last thing I must ask," Konoemon said. "This is just protocol, but, during your time here, has any normal human seen your abilities."

Naruto stayed silent for a moment then grinned. "I am a ninja. I don't get caught."

Then the blond vanished in a swirl of leaves.

Konoemon frowned. He was going to have to call someone to clean up all the leaves now.

Ninja.

xXx

**11 Days Ago**

The day of Kakizaki Misa made less and less sense as it went on.

Uzumaki Naruto

Evangeline A.K. McDowell

Ninja

Vampire

She thought Eva was just playing around at first, but those powers were too real to be just a prank.

Eva had superpowers!

Naruto-sensei had superpowers!

She hadn't even seen the arrows Eva threw until Naruto-sensei had moved her to the roof, and that speed! It was like he was teleporting! It was like an action movie. She had known the teacher was athletic, but that was just beyond what humans could do.

Had she been Chisame, she would no doubt be complaining over the loss of her normal life. Misa had never had any such delusions. Her classmates were far from normal already.

Chachamaru was totally a robot. Who did she think she fooled?

Still, there was a big difference between drawing out conclusions and seeing it firsthand. The inhuman speed of Naruto-sensei, the mysterious vials, and arrows Evangeline had used.

It was so cool!

She was not quite sure what the two were fighting about. She had not been close enough to hear everything but did manage to make out her homeroom teacher's name.

Was Negi also involved in this?

Her train of thought was stopped when the battle ended as suddenly as it began. Naruto vanished only to reappear next to her. In an instant, she found herself in another part of the city.

It was right then that Misa realized Naruto-sensei was really amazing.

For his part, Naruto looked at the middle-school girl and tried to think what to do. He knew abilities like his were something to be kept hidden from the general population in this world.

He did not care that much for that rule. It was why he did all the things he did and then used a silly excuse like being an awesome PE Teacher. As far as he could tell, he fit right in.

Then again, the Headmaster would probably be mad at him for letting someone see this much.

"Troublesome," the blond borrowed Shikamaru's favorite word while scratching the back of his head.

The word was enough to snap Misa out of her shock.

"THAT. WAS. AWESOME!" The cheerleader shouted nearly jumping in place.

"How did you do it? Are you really a ninja? You were so fast! It was like you were teleporting! What does Eva have to do with this? Did you know she was a vampire? Are vampires real? What was the stuff she was doing? Where did the arrows come from? Was it magic? What does Eva want with Negi-sensei? Is Negi also involved in this? Is-"

"Hold it! Stop for a second!" Even for Naruto, those were far too many words per second.

"But it wa-mhmm!" In an instant, the blond had his hand over the cheerleader's mouth.

"Something very secret," he finished for her.

It struck Misa that just because Naruto-sensei had saved her did not mean she was safe. He was obviously part of whatever she had found. Fear returned to her. She had seen what the blond could do. She did not have a chance against that speed. She was going to get captured and probed like in the movies!

By a really hot guy.

Suddenly it didn't seem like such a bad fate.

"I won't hurt you," Naruto said, ending her fantasy trip. "I will answer any questions you have, but promise me you won't tell anyone about this. Okay?"

The gentleness in his voice put the girl at ease. Slowly, she nodded. Naruto let her go.

"Tell me," Misa breathed out.

Naruto told her. He told her about the supernatural. He told her about mages and their world and a bit about ninja and his world. He told her about Negi, and that he had been hired to protect him.

Misa stayed silent during his explanation.

"So let me see if I understand this: There is a secret society of mages and Mahora doubles as a school for some of them?"

Naruto nodded.

"And Negi is also a mage? Who for some reason needs to be an English teacher in Japan?"

"Yeah…I never got that part either. It is some kind of initiation for them apparently."

"Okay, odd mage ceremonies aside, you are a ninja from another world, and Negi's sister hired you to protect him, right?"

"Cousin, but yeah. That pretty much sums it up."

"Good then."

Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"You are taking this surprisingly well," Naruto said.

"I think I am so shocked I can't feel anything anymore," Misa said.

Naruto looked at Misa with a worried look on his face. "If it is too much, I could make you forget about this. That is supposed to be the standard procedure when normal people find out about magic in this world."

That got a reaction out of the girl.

"NO!" she shouted with all her strength.

Forget! Was he joking? She had just found out magic was real. Forget about it? No way! Magic was… magic was…

"Magic is awesome! I mean, what you and Eva were doing? That was amazing! I am not forgetting about this," the girl declared.

Naruto smiled and held up his hands up. "Fine. Have it your way, but remember. What happened tonight-"

"I will never say a word. Got it!" The girl promised.

"So long as you understand that, it is fine by me. Never cared for the idea of messing with people's memories," Naruto said. He turned to leave.

"Wait!" Misa said. "You can't leave me here!"

Naruto tilted his head. "It's a rooftop but there is a door leading to the building. It's not hard to get to the dorms from here."

"What I mean to say it… with all the workload you give us, and my cheerleader duties, and well… everything that just happened…" The girl trailed off, an uncharacteristically shy expression on her face.

"Are you okay? Did Eva do something to you?" he asked. He had made sure the vampire did not lay a finger on her.

"…I can't walk…" she finally mumbled.

"… what?"

"I can't walk!" she shouted. "My legs… they don't respond. I think I am too shocked from everything that happened, so could you," she was blushing now, "could you please carry me."

Rather than ask more questions, Naruto walked to her, knelt down, and offered her his back for a piggyback ride.

"Put your arms around me. I will take you to your dorm."

"Just like that?"

"Just like that," Naruto replied with a smile.

With a smile of her own Misa complied and wrapped her arms around Naruto. Naruto got up grabbed hold of her legs.

"Alright then, we're off!"

Naruto leaped from the building. Misa didn't scream. All the shock she could muster had already been exhausted by the revelations of the night. Instead, she looked in wonder as the blond leaped from building to building, moving as easily in the sky as if he were flying.

Misa smiled as she snuggled closer to Naruto's well-muscled back, enjoying the feeling of his hands on her skin.

A girl could get used to this.

xXx

The blond sighed as he walked out of the building. He still had no clue what he should do about Misa. Sure, the girl had promised she would keep the secret, and he believed her. However, one wrong word could land him in some trouble. He was supposed to be keeping the Secret and all that.

Besides, he was a ninja, damn it! He had a reputation to uphold!

Cool Ninja didn't get seen.

Unless there was an awesome boss fight, which didn't matter in this case as that Evangeline girl was far from Final Boss material in Naruto's opinion.

Somewhere in Mahora, Evangeline felt the urge to kill a certain blond.

For a moment, he wondered if he should use the same seal he used on Chamo, but the idea was quickly dismissed. The girl did not deserve that.

He was probably worrying too much. He just had to trust his student.

"Sensei!"

Caught up in his musings he did not hear the voice. The flying tackle? That he felt.

"What the- Misa!"

Reflexively, he wrapped his arms around her to keep her from falling. This left them in a position far too close for the level of teacher and student.

"What are you doing?" Naruto asked, voice flat.

"Greeting sensei," the girl answered, uncaring of the stares they drew.

"And how is a flying tackle a good way to greet your teacher?"

"Negi-sensei doesn't complain."

Naruto let go of her.

Misa's butt met the floor. It was not a nice meeting.

"That hurt," she said. "I fell on my ass. I am blaming you if it gets flatter because of this."

"I am sure your butt is just fine."

Misa perked up. "Could you touch it just to be sure?"

"Don't push it," he warned. Dealing with this girl was tiring. "Anyway, what do you want?"

"You know…" the girl leaned close to him and then whispered, "magic stuff."

On second thought, trusting her was a horrible idea.

Naruto sighed, grabbed the girl's wrist, and led her away from the small crowd that had been forming. Now doubt there would be rumors about the two of them all over campus tomorrow. Naruto and Misa turned left on the first alley. Once they were out of sight, they vanished.

"First of all" Naruto began as they reappeared on the roof, "I told you not to do that stuff. I am your teacher, you know? It may look okay with a ten-year-old but not with me. Second, no magic talk in public."

"Hey, that's way too cold! Shouldn't a man feel pleased when receiving attention from a beautiful girl?" Misa bent over slightly while pushing her breasts together with her arms, giving Naruto a good view of her cleavage.

Misa was an attractive girl. The same could be said for most girls in class 3-A.

Unlike most of her classmates, Misa was aware of her looks and the effect they had on the people around her. While most of her classmates would balk, blush, and stutter at the idea of seducing a man, Misa would just smile and do it.

She was the type of girl that would seriously contemplate seducing a ten-year-old in order to have a well-trained boyfriend in the future.

"That's not going to work."

But Naruto was a ninja.

"It is not easy to seduce a ninja, you know?" Naruto said in a lecturing manner.

He was lying. The girl could probably have the twelve-year-old him warped around her pinky in under a minute.

A certain old pervert had managed to fix that weakness during the years they traveled together.

"Naruto-sensei is not fair," the girl said with a cute pout in her face.

"And seducing the teacher is against the rules," he told her with an amused smile in spite of himself. "Now, what did you want to ask me?"

"Oh, right! The battle!" The girl said, dropping her attempts at seduction for now.

"What battle?" Naruto said, knowing full well what she was talking about. Over the last few days, Misa had been meeting with him to learn more about the supernatural. He had obliged and spared some time to talk with her each day.

These meetings were not dates.

Really.

Anyway, one particular subject came up in those meetings: Negi and Evangeline.

"You know what I am talking about? The battle! Vampire vs Mage! Tonight is the final showdown!"

Years of experience, the information he got from a certain ermine periodically, and his gut feeling told him the conflict between the two would be settled tonight.

Mostly his gut feeling.

"And what makes you think I am taking you with me?" He asked.

Misa thought about trying to use her appeal again but stopped herself in time. It was time for a change in tactics.

"I see," Misa said, casting a sad gaze to the floor. "Sensei is right. I would be in danger if I went to such a place. There is no way sensei could protect me."

"Wait, hold it!"

"Sensei is only a ninja."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"He couldn't hope to compete against mages."

"That's just... sad. It's completely transparent. You are trying to trick me. It is obvious. I understand, so-"

"It is better if I stay here because sensei will not be able to protect me," the girl finished with a resigned look on her face.

Oh, that was it.

Misa yelped as Naruto took her in his arms.

"So I will take you to watch that damn fight! As long as you are next to me, you are in the safest place in the whole damn world!" Naruto said while jumping from roof to roof.

"It is so nice to have such a strong, dependable sensei," Misa said, giving him a peck on the cheek.

"You are so going get it in the next class," the blond grumbled.

Ninja and student moved through Mahora.

A battle was about to begin.

xXx

**Extra Scene: The Sniper**

xXx

Mana Tatsumiya could not be described as a social person. Even among her classmates, few had exchanged more than a few sentences with her. Fewer still could say they actually knew Mana Tatsumiya.

That suited Mana just fine.

Which is why many would find it odd she was visiting one of her classmates today.

Her reason was a simple one.

Business.

Chachamaru opened the door as soon as she knocked. The gynoid gave her a short bow before leading her inside. The owner of the house sat waiting for her with a cup of tea in hand.

Evangeline A.K. McDowell.

Mana knew the vampire was a mere shadow of her former self, but she could not help but feel a little nervous around her. Regardless, this was business, and people like Evangeline did not live so long without accumulating a sizable fortune.

"You are early," the vampire said. She made no effort to get up. Instead, she sat like a queen gazing down on a peasant.

Of course.

"I do not like to keep prospective customers waiting," Mana said. The vampire motioned for her to sit.

"Tea?"

"I am afraid I will have to decline," Mana said, taking her seat.

"Very well, then allow me to get straight to the point. What do you know about ninja from the Elemental Countries?"

Ah.

"I presume this is about Uzumaki Naruto?" Mana asked.

"He has proven himself an annoyance," the vampire said offhandedly. "I desire to know just how much of an annoyance he can make himself if he tries."

In her long life, Evangeline had accumulated a wealth of knowledge. The Elemental Countries were not part of it. That world kept to itself. At least, it had done so for most of her life. Only in the past few years had that changed.

Put bluntly, the knowledge was _too recent_ for her.

Normally Mana would have charged for the information, but this was not one her usual customers.

"Ninja from the Elemental Countries did not interfere with our world until a few years ago," Mana begun. "They became easier to find. They took on more jobs. It is unknown what exactly happened to cause the change. Most of the information seems to point to their world managing to achieve a state of relative peace. Without conflict…"

"The ninja found themselves without jobs," the vampire muttered, amused. "They needed to look for work elsewhere."

"That seems to be the case."

Eva nodded. "That partially explains his presence here, but I did not call you for background information. What can you tell me about his abilities?"

"A few years ago, I would have been certain he was ranked Chunin or higher. Off-world travel was limited to those ranks, but times have changed. Nevertheless, I doubt he is a genin. The way he handles himself denotes great experience."

In all the time Mana had seen him, Naruto had never once let his guard down. When he walked around the campus, when he ate, when he yelled at her classmates, and even when laughed, the blond never once let his guard down.

He did not even seem to think about it. It seemed to be as natural as breathing to him.

It was the sign of a man who had seen countless battles.

Evangeline took a sip of tea. "I figured as much. I do hate an unknown factor in my plans. I guess I will have to depend on my dear classmate for help."

Evangeline smiled.

"Of course, you will be compensated for your kindness."

"It is certainly a tempting offer," she said, "but before accepting, I would like you to answer a question of mine."

"And that would be…"

"Just how far do you intend to go?" Mana asked. "So far no one has been seriously hurt in your attacks, but none of those people were your real target. How far are you willing to push the battle with Negi-sensei?"

Evangeline smiled, uncaring. "So you even know about that. Your information gathering skills are quite good."

"I do not require your praise just the information," Mana said, a hard glint in her eyes.

"Temper. Temper," Evangeline mocked. "Do not forget where you are, Tatsumiya."

A shadow fell over her and Mana did not need to look to know Chachamaru was right behind her.

Mana's body tensed. The gynoid's abilities were a mystery to her, one she was not looking forward to finding out in a real battle, especially not while in the seat of Evangeline's power.

"I must say, it is surprising to see you exhibit such care for a child you have only known for a few months."

"I do not make it a habit to stand by when a child is in danger," the sniper replied.

"I see," Evangeline said before smiling. "Then allow me to put your concerns at ease. I will not kill the child. I just need some blood from him. Not enough to kill him."

"In that case," Mana said with a smile of her own, "I see no reason to deny my help to a fellow classmate."

"However," Mana added, her smile vanishing, "If you try to kill him, I will end you myself."

Evangeline chuckled. It had been a while since she had been threatened. She supposed she could let it go.

For now.

Evangeline shook hands with the sniper.

The deal was made.

xXx

Two Months - End

xXx

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Alright, with this, the story is caught up to the FF.Net version. It means new chapters will not come out as fast, but I'll try to keep a rate of one per month.
> 
> If you enjoyed this story, check out my other fanfics. If you enjoy those, consider checking out my e-books (I have those. Guess who is a published writer? Me!). Just look for the Amazon link in my profile page.
> 
> Don't forget to comment!


	4. Chapter 4

Man, it's been a long time, hasn't it? Let's see if I can keep up that once per month schedule a bit better this time around.

**Disclaimer** : The author does not make any claims of ownership over Negima or Naruto. They are the property of their respective owners.

xXx

_Once upon a time, there was no moon._

_Somehow, people forgot that and dismissed the truth as a legend. People tend to do that quite easily. Have you ever wondered why, Naruto-kun?_

_It is because their minds cannot allow that which is beyond them._

-From the Journal of **REDACTED** -

xXx

Night and Day

xXx

Night had fallen. Electricity was down all throughout the city. Moonlight shone over the empty streets.

A fitting stage for a vampire.

The only problem was…

"Nothing is happening!"

"Wait for it," said a certain blond ninja.

"We have been waiting for an hour already!"

Misa was angry. She had been expecting an amazing magical showdown the likes of which movies wished they could produce. All the elements were there.

Evangeline A.K. McDowell. The Undying Mage.

Negi Springfield. Son of the Thousand Master.

Vampire vs Mage. A duel for the ages.

At least, that was how it should have gone. Instead, she had been stuck waiting atop of a school building for over an hour.

Needless to say, her patience had long worn thin.

Maybe, this whole thing hadn't been such a good idea. It was late and there were no signs of anything remotely magical happening. The more she stayed here the more likely it was for her roommates to find out she had snuck out. At this rate, she was going to face an avalanche of questions from them when she got back.

Misa was just about to voice her thoughts to Naruto when the sound of shattering glass broke through the night.

"Told you," Naruto said, an overly pleased smile on his face.

Misa saw Negi's small body fall out of the window chased by arrows of ice. Panic flared in her heart as the child teacher was about to hit the ground, but Negi did not crash.

He flew.

The wooden staff he carried with him played the part of a witch's broom as he took to the skies.

Evangeline came out after him, utterly ignoring gravity, and dressed in something Misa was reasonably certain was not legal for such a young-looking girl to wear. Chachamaru came right behind her much to Misa's surprise. She had not known vampires and robots could work together.

Chachamaru was also wearing a maid outfit.

Under other circumstances, Misa would have been surprised at how well it suited her.

She was soon distracted from her thoughts when her classmates appeared and attacked Negi.

"Probably mind-controlled," Naruto said, interpreting her shock accurately. "Don't worry. I will talk to the headmaster later. He will have them back to normal soon."

Misa said nothing, too stunned to even talk. She could only watch as Negi easily took care of her classmates before taking off for the sky with Evangeline and Chachamaru in pursuit.

Misa yelped when Naruto picked her in his arms and jumped off the building.

"What are you doing?" She shouted.

"You wanted to see the fight," he replied. "Now be quiet or they will notice us."

Although Naruto did not fly, he easily kept pace with the mages.

"They are heading for the bridge. That kind of brings back memories. I remember when I had my first final showdown on a bridge," Naruto said.

"You can have more than one final showdown?"

"In this line of work? Of course! You can have several in a row even. Oh, here's a nice spot!" Naruto said as he landed on a rooftop close to the bridge.

"This is too far. We won't be able to see a thing," Misa complained.

"Trust me," Naruto said, smiling. "When the fight starts, you'll definitely see it. Magic is flashy, and that means a lot coming from me."

"Besides, this is a good spot to spy," Naruto added, not looking at Misa. "It is just the right distance for them not to see us and if anything bad happens I am close enough to interfere. You are probably thinking something like that, right?"

Misa blinked, unsure of who Naruto was talking to. She would soon have the answer to that question.

"You managed to detect my presence. Sensei is certainly quite skilled," said a female as she stepped out of the shadows.

"Mana!"

Misa's eyes grew wide at her sudden appearance. The dark-skinned student was not dressed in her school uniform. Instead, Mana had opted for a form-fitting leotard covered by a white jacket and pants.

And Guns. Very real-looking, very menacing guns.

"Meh, it is nothing," Naruto said, waving the compliment away. "You have been spying on me for some time now. I had to notice it at some point."

Although she didn't show it, Mana was impressed. She had not caught a hint of him realizing she was there.

"It appears my initial assessment of you was wrong," she finally said. "You are far better than I thought you would be."

The predatory grin on her face made it unclear whether the reevaluation was a good thing or not.

Naruto grinned.

"Don't feel bad about it. You aren't the first one to underestimate me. It happens," he said. It actually happened way too often for his tastes. Was it anything he did?

It wasn't like he went out of his way to be underestimated. He was a badass ninja.

Hell, he was _the_ badass ninja.

Surely some of that showed no matter what he did?

"Wait! Hold it!" Misa said, holding out her hands and saving Naruto from potentially damaging introspection. "You are also in on this? Are those real guns?"

Mana acted as if she had not heard her. "You do realize it is a breach of the rules to let her know about this world."

"Relax," Naruto said. "If something happens I will take responsibility. Besides, I don't like erasing memories."

It wasn't like he could in the first place. Memory manipulation was more of a Yamanaka thing.

Mana considered his words. She did not care for the rules all that much. Plus, Misa was part of 3-A. Mana would be really surprised if the entire class did not find out about Magic before the end of the year.

"Very well then."

"Hello! Is no one hearing me?"

"Calm down," Naruto said.

"Calm down? I just found out another one of my classmates is involved in this and is a gun-wielding…" she trailed off as she looked at Mana's attire.

"Mercenary," Mana supplied helpfully.

"Mercenary," Misa continued, before stopping again. "Does that mean you are here to kill us?"

"Nah, there is no killing intent coming from her," Naruto said. "Really, you worry too much."

"She has guns! Real guns! That shoot people!"

"You have nothing to worry about. I am here, remember?" Naruto said.

He put his hands on Misa's shoulders and looked into her eyes. Staring at those clear blue pools was enough to silence Misa for a moment.

"I told you before. I'll protect you. As long as you are next to me, you are in the safest place in the whole world. So trust me," he said with a gentle voice. "I won't let anything bad happen to you. I promise."

Even in the darkness, Misa's blush was plain to see. She was used to cheesy lines, but the sheer heartfelt honesty in Naruto's voice threw her off balance. She could only manage to nod dumbly.

"It is as Naruto-sensei says," Mana added for Misa's benefit. "I was hired by Evangeline to stop Naruto-sensei from interfering with her plans tonight. As long as he does not become involved there is no reason to fight."

Naruto nodded. "I figured it was something like that. Nice to know Eva is not planning on killing Negi."

The sniper turned her gold eyes to him.

"I am curious as to how you came to that conclusion?" Mana asked.

Naruto cocked his head to the side. "You are not the type to work for someone who would kill a kid. Sure, you may look cold and distant, but your aura is warm and kind."

He said it in such a matter-of-fact way that Mana lost her cool look for a moment.

"Now you are flirting with her?"

Misa was not jealous. Not at all.

Thankfully for all on the rooftop, they were saved from any further talk by a large explosion coming from the bridge.

"It appears they have started," Mana noted.

"About time!" shouted Naruto.

"It is those arrows again! They are so cool!" Misa said as she saw the dark forms of Negi and Evangeline become illuminated by the clash of magic.

"Elemental arrows are one of the most basic combat spells as well as some of the most useful," Mana said for Misa's benefit.

Naruto pouted. "Ninja can use elemental attacks too."

"Heh, Sensei is cute when he is- wait, is that Asuna? What is she doing there?"

"She seems to have formed a provisional contract with Negi-sensei to fight Evangeline," Mana deduced.

"Oh, is that what mages do to share their powers with non-magic users?" Naruto asked. He was not really familiar with all the mechanics.

"That's one way of putting it," Mana said with an unreadable look on her face.

"You mean Mages can give others magical powers?" Misa asked. That was a very interesting piece of information.

Just then another explosion rang through the area.

"Way to go, sensei! Kick her ass!"

"She's just playing around. If she really wanted to win, she could have done it at any moment," Naruto commented.

Konoemon had been too worried it seemed. The same went for him. Sure, the power was the real deal, but Evangeline was completely lacking in killing intent. As far as the blond could tell, it looked like she was having fun.

"That seems to be the case. It is understandable. This is the first time in years she has been able to access her true powers," Mana said without taking her eyes off the battle. "Regardless, it seems this won't last much longer."

All three watched as magic gathered around the two combatants.

Thunder and lightning against darkness and ice. Magic against magic. With one last burst of strength, the young mage poured everything he had into the spell hoping it was enough.

It was.

Light overwhelmed darkness, swallowing it whole and engulfing the vampire in its power.

No one spoke as the smoke cleared, revealing the vampire's form. Despite taking all that power only her clothes were ruined.

Electricity returned to the campus and another surge of power assaulted the vampire's body, this one far more effective than the last. The magic that had kept her tied to the campus for years took hold of her once more, stripping her of her power.

Leaving her to the mercy of gravity.

"She is going to fall!" cried out Misa. Without her powers, Evangeline would surely die from a fall like that.

But such a thing would not happen tonight.

A teacher did not let any harm fall upon his students.

Negi flew at breakneck speeds towards Evangeline. The child turned all of his remaining magic power into speed. With experience born from days of constant practice, he safely caught her falling body.

"Cool…" muttered Misa as she stared at the child teacher.

"Awesome little guy, isn't he?" Naruto had an approving smile as he looked at Negi from the rooftop.

"He is certainly impressive for his age," Mana agreed.

The battle was over.

xXx

Evangeline smiled as she leaned back into her comfy chair with a glass of blood in her hand.

Last night had not gone well for her. She had wasted time and been defeated by a mere ten-year-old mage.

She even had to be saved by him!

Evangeline was a sore loser and normally that combination of events would have been enough to put her in a foul mood for days.

Instead, a wide grin was spread across her face.

The information she had received from the brat this morning made all the humiliation meaningless and unimportant.

Nagi Springfield was alive.

The Thousand Master was alive!

Nothing could possibly ruin this moment.

"Hey, tutorial boss!"

Crack!

The glass in her hand was not the only thing that shattered.

"I apologize, Master," said Chachamaru as she stepped into the room. "Naruto-sensei insisted on seeing you."

"You!" the chibi vampire roared.

"Yeah, me," Naruto said, waving as he sat down in front of her. "I figured I should come to visit you."

"For what purpose? No. Don't bother answering the question. You are about to leave anyway. Chachamaru will show you the way out," Evangeline said.

The way she said it made it clear it was an order for both of them. The blond was to leave the house through violence if necessary.

Far from looking worried, Naruto just leaned back against his chair. "You don't want to do that. Whether Chachamaru forces me out or not, your house wouldn't survive it."

That gave Eva a pause. She did not care much for her house. She had both better and worse throughout her long life.

However, without a place to stay she would be forced to sleep… in the girl dorms.

She shuddered at the thought.

Konoemon would not pass up a chance like that up, especially not after her little stunt the other night. She would be forced to put up with her hyperactive classmates 24/7 until her house was rebuilt.

The sly smile on Naruto's face told her he was also aware of the fact.

She glared at him. "Fine! Say what you want. Laugh at me and be done with it!"

Naruto pouted. "You have a really low opinion of me, don't you? You think I'm the type to make fun of someone who lost to a ten-year-old because she spent so much time playing around? Uzumaki Naruto would never make fun of someone stupid enough to waste her one chance of gaining freedom after a decade!"

"You are doing it! You are doing it right now! You're insulting me, you bastard," Evangeline yelled at him. She would have tackled him had Chachamaru not moved in to restrain her. As it was, her hands futilely tried to reach for his throat.

Chachamaru was a concerned robot.

It wouldn't look good on her master's permanent record if she attacked a teacher.

Well, another one.

"Master, please," Chachamaru said. Then she turned to Naruto, "Sensei, please do not tease master like that."

"Fine, I will stop," Naruto said, raising his arms in surrender.

Evangeline struggled for a few more moments, trying to get out of Chachamaru's grip before giving up. Sensing her master would not try anything for now, the gynoid let her go. With an indignant 'humph' Evangeline leaned back into her chair with a magnificent scowl on her face.

"Is there really any need to look at me like that?" Naruto asked.

Eva's scowl grew darker.

"Fine, be that way. I just came to ask you what you thought about Negi."

"There is no need to ask that of me. You were watching the fight last night with Tatsumiya."

Mentioning the sniper made her angrier. She had hired Mana to fight Naruto. Instead, the woman had merely chatted with him while they watched the fight. Worse, Mana had fulfilled what was written in her contract. Naruto had not interfered in her fight with Negi which meant she had to pay the woman for doing nothing at all!

The mercenary woman was so going to get it once she was free.

"Yeah, but you were the one who fought him. That puts you in a better position to judge."

She huffed. "If it will get you out of here, then fine. His magical skill is above the norm for his age. Some of the spells he used would take years for an ordinary mage to learn. In addition, his magical capacity is abnormally high."

"Wow, that's a surprisingly good report. I expected you to say something like, 'A brat like him is nothing more than cannon fodder,'" Naruto said, doing a poor imitation of her voice. "You know, that sort of stuff." .

"I wasn't finished," the vampire said. "Those were just his good points. While the boy has power, he is too green. He has little awareness of the battlefield. He leaves himself vulnerable while chanting spells. He has no fighting skill to speak of."

Naruto sighed. "Yeah, I figured as much. Thanks for confirming it, though."

Negi had power. That much was clear, but his inexperience did not allow him to take full advantage of that power.

That sounded annoyingly familiar.

"Worried about your charge?" Evangeline mocked.

"Something like that," the blond admitted much to Eva's surprise. "As long as I'm here, no harm will come to him, but if I start to intervene…."

"If you intervene, you worry he will not grow properly from future challenges" Evangeline guessed.

"Kind of," Naruto admitted.

Evangeline scoffed.

"You are too soft. If the kid is so weak, he can't win no matter what then let him get beat up. If he can't grow from that experience, then that's as far as he goes. It means that from the beginning he wasn't much," the vampire said coldly.

Naruto nodded. He had more or less come to the same conclusion. Only his version sounded way nicer.

Of course, that didn't mean he couldn't give the kid a slight push every now and then.

"Well, I guess I better get going. I still have to pack for the trip to Kyoto," he said as he stood up. "Thanks for the advice."

Evangeline huffed. "It is not like I had any intention of helping you."

"Even so, you give good advice… for a starter boss. Bye, Chachamaru!"

With those words, the blond disappeared from the room.

Leaving one pissed off vampire.

"Master?" Chachamaru asked as she saw the vampire's trembling form.

Trembling with rage, that is.

"…maim him… one day…get his…," the vampire muttered under her breath.

Chamamaru filed the events in her database.

It was not often her master made a friend.

xXx

It was early in the afternoon. Misa and Naruto walked through the streets of Harajuku, the latter carrying a large amount of bags.

"Why am I doing this again?" Naruto asked.

"I told you. The school trip is the day after tomorrow. We are buying clothes," the girl explained.

"And I am paying why?"

"Isn't it obvious the boyfriend should be the one to pay?"

Naruto had to give her credit; she almost looked like she believed what she said.

"That's a nice delusion you have there."

"If it is a delusion, why are you the one paying for everything?" she asked smugly.

Naruto blinked, then looked at the bags. "That's horrible logic. But seriously, why am I paying again? I still have no idea how you convinced me to do this."

"Because sensei is my boyfriend," she said proudly, "at least until I switch to Negi."

"I am getting dumped already!"

"Don't take it the wrong way. I have been thinking about it since the fight the other night. Negi-sensei is impressive, and it is easy to see he will be handsome when he grows up. If I take a chance now, I can make a strong impression on him, train him just right."

"… you are planning to brainwash a ten-year-old."

"Train. I plan to train a ten-year-old. I will call it the Reverse Hikaru Genji plan," Misa declared proudly, hands on her hips.

"You are a terrible woman."

"My role model is Fujiko Mine so I will take that as a compliment," Misa replied.

Naruto sighed and glanced at her chest. "You a bit lacking to follow those footsteps."

Rather than getting angry, Misa threw her shoulders back to accentuate her chest. She wasn't Chizuru but she was far from flat-chested. Indeed, the action drew more than a few stares.

"I am confident in my figure," she said but was somewhat disappointed there was not even a small blush on her teacher's face. "Besides, I am still growing."

"Putting your questionable role models and vicious plans aside," Naruto said. "We are being followed."

"What?" The girl instantly latched on to one of Naruto's arms for safety.

From an outsider's point of view, they looked like an ordinary couple.

"Who is it? Tatsumiya? Evangeline? The mages from the school found out I know and want to erase my memories?"

"Nothing so serious," he said, waving her concerns away. "They seem to be-"

"I knew it! I knew something was wrong when you said you didn't want to go shopping! You never not want to go shopping. You really are dating a teacher!"

"Misa, I wish I could say this comes as a surprise, but I always knew it was just a matter of time before you did something like this."

Two voices, one accusing and the other resigned made themselves known to the duo as their owners jumped out of their hiding places. One was a brown-eyed, shorthaired brunette and the other was blue-eyed blonde with her hair tied up in twin tails.

"Madoka! Sakurako! This is not what it lo- what do you mean you aren't surprised! Just how low is your opinion of me?" Misa asked with a twitch in her eyebrow.

"Come on, it is obvious. The time you have been spending together outside classes is abnormal," Sakurako said, choosing to ignore Misa's comment.

"During the past weeks, you two have been going on dates in secret," Madoka added.

"Those were not dates," Naruto said. "Why does everyone get the wrong idea? We only…"

Went shopping together. Walked around the campus together. Ate together. Secretly met up at night.

Naruto snapped his mouth shut.

"Sensei is right. We are not dating," Misa said. "I have just been talking with him to… learn more about the subject! Yes, that's it."

"He teaches P.E." Madoka countered. "There is nothing to be learned about it by talking!"

"Ugh!" Misa… ugh-ed.

"Hey, I resent that," Naruto said. He would have raised a finger if he weren't carrying so many bags. "My subject can create very deep discussions!"

"Besides, if this isn't a date, then why is sensei paying for your clothes?" Madoka asked.

"Yes, everyone knows it is serious when a man takes a woman shopping like that. In Harajuku, no less," Sakurako said, nodding like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Hold it," Naruto exclaimed, raising his arms into the air. "Does everyone know that but me?"

"Yes," answered all three girls at the same time.

Naruto's right eyebrow twitched dangerously. "Okay, that's enough. Buying clothes for one of my students doesn't mean I am dating her, and yes, I'm just now realizing how that sounds like but still! You two will drop the subject right now and never mention it ever again. Understood?"

"But-"

"She-"

"I can make you both run extra laps," Naruto interrupted. The threat was clear in his voice.

In an instant, the two cheerleaders snapped into a perfect military salute.

"Understood. We saw nothing. Nothing happened today. Nothing at all," they said in perfect synch.

Misa licked her lips. Naruto was hot when he was commanding.

"Glad we got this cleared up," Naruto said. "Now… isn't that Negi?"

The three girls turned to where he was pointing. Sure enough, it was their ten-year-old teacher and with him was...

"Konoka!" the three gasped simultaneously.

"Shopping together in Harajuku," Misa pointed out.

"Is sensei buying?" Sakurako asked.

"Don't be ridiculous. He is a kid. Konoka wouldn't make him buy her clothes!" Madoka said.

"Wait, so is she buying then? Does it count if the girl buys?"

"Not again," muttered Naruto while rubbing his temples. "A guy and a girl shopping for clothes together does not mean they are dating."

The three girls looked at him with expressions of pity, akin to the way a teacher looks at the student she knows is never going to graduate.

"Sensei, you can't deny there is a certain mood around them," said Madoka.

As if on cue, a soft wind carried the words of the couple all the way to them.

"No, I am happy… to think that you'd be worried about me," Konoka said with a smile and a soft blush on her cheeks.

"Konoka-san," the child said with grateful eyes that stared at nothing but the girl in front of him.

Naruto sweatdropped.

"See!" Sakurako said. "You can even see the flowery background behind them!"

"Come on! He is ten. They are not dating," Naruto said, although not as certain as before.

"You are taking this too lightly, sensei. It is our moral duty to watch these two," Misa declared. "This could be just a misunderstanding but can we really take the chance? Konoka and Negi have been living together for quite some time now. It is not absurd to think something could have happened between the two. It is our moral duty as fellow students, nay as human beings, to find out if this is what it seems and put an end to it if they are truly dating."

It was a passionate speech.

Naruto answered the speech with a look that plainly said, 'Moral duty? You are just worried Konoka will ruin your Genji plan.'

The look Misa gave him in return said, 'It is 'Reverse Hikaru Genji' plan, and that is most definitely not the reason I am doing this.'

"Liar," Naruto said.

"They can already talk by trading looks," Madoka muttered.

"I am so jealous right now," Sakurako muttered back to her.

"You two stop muttering those things," Naruto said. He suddenly had a moment of extreme empathy for Iruka. Dealing with students was way more tiring that he thought it would be.

Meanwhile, Misa took the opportunity to call Asuna.

"Hey, Asuna," Misa said as the girl answered her call. "You will never believe what we just saw…"

Naruto sighed as he watched the events unfold. Somehow, it seemed that at least one deity out there liked Misa. Not only was Asuna there but Yukihiro Ayaka as well.

Naruto only knew two things about the girl. One, she was the class representative of class 3-A. Two, she was crazy about Negi. In short, she was the perfect person to help Misa. With a few threa... words, she convinced Sakurako and Madoka to help out Misa in "preserving Negi-sensei's virtue."

With the situation escalating, Naruto settled for following the trio.

To keep things from getting worse, of course.

And maybe, just maybe, for the amusement factor.

What followed next were the most blatant attempts to interrupt a date Naruto had ever seen. Not that he had seen many, but he was surprised the two of them hadn't caught on yet.

Negi was way too clueless about some things.

"Guess that's another thing we need to work on," he muttered.

Madoka turned to look at him. "Did you say something, Naruto-sensei?"

"Nothing you should worry about," he said with his best smile.

"Shh, stop talking you two. They could hear us," whispered Sakurako.

"I really don't think whispering is necessary. Negi is asleep and Konoka-san is busy paying attention to him," Naruto said.

"Don't say that," snapped Misa. "Having a younger guy resting on your lap…. I am so jealous of her right now. Class rep, where are you?"

"If you are so worried why don't you interrupt them?" Naruto asked.

"If I do that, it will seem like I am the jealous type!" Misa said. "That would make a horrible impression."

Luckily for Misa, she didn't have to do anything. One minute and one mock attempt at a kiss later, Yukihiro Ayaka arrived.

"Hold it, you two! As class representative I cannot allow this to happen," the girl yelled as she made her presence known to the "couple."

For his part, Naruto just watched as the scene unfolded. He chuckled when Konoka and Negi revealed they had actually been buying a birthday gift for Asuna.

Right after that, the cheerleaders also showered Asuna with the gifts they had taken from the dating duo.

Even Naruto had joined in on the gift-giving.

"Dumbbells? Really? You want me to work out even outside your class?" the birthday girl had asked.

Despite the words, Naruto could tell the girl was grateful.

Smiling, Naruto looked over his shoulder. Ayaka was in front of the now cowering cheerleaders. The class representative was not happy about the misunderstanding, it seemed.

"We are sorry!"

"We thought it was a date!

"Anyone would have made the same mistake!"

"No excuses!" Ayaka shouted, making the cheerleaders cower even more.

"Come on, class rep. Don't be like that," Naruto said.

"Punishing students is not a class rep's job," he said, making hope bloom in the hearts of the cheerleaders.

"It is a teacher's job."

Hope was run over by a truck and set on fire.

Ayaka considered this for a moment. The only contact she had with Naruto-sensei was during classes. Said classes consisted of grueling, dangerous physical exercise that she was sure had to be illegal. Worse, he made them do all of it with a smile on his face.

Perfect.

Besides, letting him take care of it meant spending more time with Negi-sensei.

"You are absolutely right, sensei," she said with a truly beatific smile. "I will let you take care of these three now. If you will excuse me, I have other matters to attend to right now… Negi-sensei! Wait for me!"

"Have a good time, Yukihiro-san," the blond shouted at her retreating form. He turned to the trio. They flinched. "Now what to do with you…"

"Please have pity on us!" The three begged, kneeling in front of him.

Naruto said nothing. He just stared at them. His cold blue eyes peered into their very souls.

Then he stopped and walked away.

"…Oh well, I will think of something later," he said uncaringly.

The cheerleaders almost facefaulted, but being part of Class 3-A had given them greater endurance to that sort of thing.

"You three are off the hook for now," he said. The smile on his face along with the way he closed his eyes made them think of a fox for some reason.

The teenaged-teacher walked away, leaving a group of relieved students behind. As fun as punishing them would have been, he also needed to get ready for the trip. Konoemon had filled him in on some of the details. It seemed like there was a high chance of something happening.

The Kyoto trip sounded like a good opportunity to help Negi out a bit.

He was going to have fun!

xXx

**Extra Scene** : Probability Masters

xXx

Inside a crowded train, an epic battle was going on.

This fight did not involve a certain red-headed teacher. It also did not involve frogs summoned to create chaos.

This was a battle between teacher and student.

The combatants faced each other without fear. Their eyes gave away nothing. They could not risk revealing anything to their opponent. In their hands, they held the cards to victory.

This was not a battle of power. It was not about skill.

As one the two slammed their cards on the table, revealing them for all to see.

"Four of a kind," they shouted.

This was a battle of luck.

"Another tie," muttered Madoka in amazement.

"Are they even supposed to shout out their hands?" Misa asked.

"Who cares? It is more exciting this way!" Haruna said.

At her side, the twins, Fuka and Fumika, nodded. "Yeah, I never thought there could be anyone as lucky as Sakurako," one of them said.

This unique poker game had quickly caught the attention of the class. About half of it was crammed around the two players to see the game.

"Never mind that, how many times does this make?" asked Yuuna.

"One hundred thirty-seven times by my count," said Satomi Hakase, Class 3-A's resident robotics expert and all-around genius. "The probability of it is less than-"

"Hey! Don't bring math into this," Haruna interrupted. "You'll take away the awesome!"

"Shut it, you are breaking the mood," Yuuna shh-ed them.

Finally, one of the two players decided to speak. "Wow, you're really good at this Sakurako! This is the first time I meet someone who can keep up with my luck!"

The girl, in turn, offered him a sunny smile. "Please sensei, you are making me blush! I never imagined sensei would have such strong luck!"

"You know you two may say that stuff," began Misa.

"But those smiles are obviously fake," continued Yuuna.

"And you have these really evil auras around you. Like, you are one step away from killing each other. I think I can even see lightning cracking in between you two," finished Haruna.

"Don't be silly. I would never harm a student," Naruto said with a big, fake smile.

"That's right, Haruna. Naruto-sensei and I are just having a friendly game," Sakurako said. The smile on her face was at odds with the dark aura surrounding her.

The schoolgirls felt the urge to flee. Getting in between these two was dangerous.

"Exactly," Naruto agreed, nodding. "Now, Nodoka-san, please shuffle the cards again."

"A…actually…," the shy girl said, "I was… wondering if someone could take my place."

"Now what are you saying, Honya?" Sakurako said while placing a hand on her shoulder. "There is no one more trustworthy than you to do this."

"Yes, don't be silly. We need someone impartial to shuffle. It is an important duty only you can do," Naruto said, imitating Sakurako's gesture.

On the surface, they were reassuring hands giving her support. In reality, they were steel shackles locking her in place.

The shy girl looked pleadingly at her classmates, but they refused to meet her gaze. Hanging her head in defeat, the poor girl prepared to shuffle again.

Fortunately, she was saved from her duty.

Unfortunately, it was by frogs deciding to flood the train.

The match between the two luck magnets would have to wait for another time.

xXx

Chapter End

xXx

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: I am kind of annoyed by this chapter.
> 
> I don't really enjoy doing a rehash of canon, yet I kind of trapped myself in the Negi/Konoka 'date.'
> 
> Well, at least the Kyoto arc has started. Things will really start to heat up from this point on.
> 
> And it only took over 10,000 words.
> 
> Yay.
> 
> Okay, that kind of sucks. I admit it. I thank the readers for their patience. Naruto will start to have a more prominent role in this arc (in the sense that he is going to be involved with the events of the manga) as opposed to being in the background.
> 
> Anyway, if you like this story, check out my other fanfics. If you like that, check out my books. All information is available in my profile.
> 
> And, of course, don't forget to comment.


	5. In Between

Look who managed to stick to his self-imposed deadline.

**Disclaimer** : I don’t own Negima or Naruto. Wish I did, though.

xXx

In Between

xXx

For Negi Springfield, it had been an exciting day.

And not the good type of exciting like when he and Anya returned home from school to celebrate the holidays with Nekane. No, this was more like that one time with the Fire Wyvern he wasn’t supposed to talk about.

The Kyoto trip was proving to be a disaster, and it hadn't even been a day yet!

Sadly, the frogs in the train had only been the start of it. It had been one accident after another since they arrived in Kyoto. Now, over half of his students were dead drunk and would no doubt be experiencing their first hangovers tomorrow. It had been a miracle they had been able to return them safely to the hotel without calling too much attention to themselves.

Negi frowned.

He had promised the headmaster he would do his best to keep the students safe, yet he was already failing!

Sure, no one had been hurt, but that had little to do with anything he had done. Had the Kansai Association really wanted to hurt his students, he wouldn't have been able to stop them.

To make matters worse, Chamo suspected one of his students, Sakurazaki Setsuna, was a spy. Negi was not so sure. He would prefer to have solid evidence before doubting his students. Then again, the sword she carried everywhere did not do her any favors, and according to the class roster, Setsuna used to live in Kyoto which was more than a little suspicious given the circumstances.

Why did things have to be so complicated?

Fighting Evangeline had been terrifying, but at least she had challenged him head-on.

“Hey, Negi! Why so gloom?” A cheerful voice asked behind him.

The young teacher did not need to turn around to know who it was. He did so anyway because it was the polite thing to do.

Manners were important.

“Good evening, Naruto-san,” Negi greeted the PE teacher.

Uzumaki Naruto.

Yet another person who was not what he seemed.

Negi had not seen it, but he had heard his students talk about the way he had dealt with the frogs. Apparently, he had just looked at them, and the frogs had suddenly fled from the train. Negi had brought it up with Chamo, but the ermine had been suspiciously silent on the subject. Chamo had just said there was absolutely no reason to suspect the other teacher, and that was that.

It was weird.

However, it was not really in Negi’s nature to be suspicious. Scaring all the frogs out of the train with a look was not normal, but it was the type of weirdness he was starting to get used to at Mahora.

Besides, if he asked, Negi was pretty sure Naruto-san would just reply with something about being a really good teacher.

He was right.

“Too formal. That's still too formal, Negi," Naruto said with a small frown. "Eh, I guess it will have to do for now. Now, come on, what's wrong? Kids shouldn't frown that much.”

“Me? There is not-Ouch!” the child cried out when Naruto lightly bopped him on the head.

“Let me tell you something good, Negi,” Naruto said, raising a finger. “An awesome teacher like me can obviously tell when a ten-year-old is lying.”

“You didn’t have to hit me so hard,” Negi grumbled while rubbing his head.

Naruto gave him an approving look. “Good, you’re loosening up. Tell you what? Let’s go buy something to drink. I’ll pay and you will tell me what’s got you down,” Naruto said, leading Negi away.

Knowing it was useless to go against the blond, Negi let himself be dragged away to the nearest vending machine in the hotel.

“So, talk,” Naruto said, throwing a canned drink at Negi.

“Well…” Negi trailed off, not quite sure what to say. He could not tell Naruto he was having trouble because he suspected one of his students of being a spy from a magical organization or that said magical organization was targeting them because he was a mage.

Naruto would think he was crazy.

"It is about the pranks, isn't it?" Naruto asked.

"The pranks?" Negi blinked a couple of times before the realization struck him. "Y-yes. Yes! The pranks! Of course!"

From the point of view of an outsider, no doubt everything that had happened so far looked like nothing more than the work of a prankster. After all, no one had been seriously hurt. The intent behind the accidents seemed more mischievous than malicious. It was far more natural to think of them as pranks rather than the work of a dangerous faction within a magical organization.

Yes, if it was like this, then he could talk freely.

"Yes, it is about the pranks," Negi said, nodding. "I am worried about one of my students. There is some evidence that she may have been involved in them.”

Yes, that worked.

“But it is not a sure thing or anything like that,” Negi hurried to add. “It is just… I do not like suspecting my students…”

“Ah, so it's one of _those_ things,” Naruto said, rubbing his chin.

Negi blinked. “Has Naruto-san been in this type of situation before?”

“It’s a lot more common that you’d think,” Naruto said while opening his drink. "Some… students are harder to deal with than others, but that’s not exactly the issue here, is it? It’s more of a trust thing, right?”

Negi nodded.

“Negi,” Naruto said, placing a hand on his shoulder, “what you are going to hear is advice from me so it is obviously great so open those ears and listen. Try giving your students the benefit of the doubt. You just said it is not a sure thing so don't jump to conclusions and get to the bottom of things without panicking, okay? Remember, if you don’t trust your students, then they won’t be able to trust you."

“Naruto-san, what if… what if I find out they are really guilty?” the child asked.

“Well, if that happens, you need to find out why they did it,” Naruto said, shrugging.

“Find out why they did it?” Negi echoed, tilting his head to the side.

“People all have their circumstances, you know? A good person can do bad things, and a bad person can do good things. It all depends on their circumstances. If you try to solve things without understanding them, you'll just feel dissatisfied in the end even if you win. You're a teacher so that goes double for you. It is your duty to understand your students, got it?”

“I see,” the child muttered, his face deep in thought.

Naruto smiled.

“You don't have to understand it right away. Just keep it in mind,” he said. “Remember, trust you students.”

“I will do my best, Naruto-san,” Negi said.

“Good,” Naruto said. “Now… want to play a card game?”

“Ye-what?”

Naruto produced a pack of cards from his pocket. Negi recognized them. It was the same game his class had been playing on the train.

“A card game. I got some from the girls back in the train, and I've been looking for someone to play against. You in?”

Negi sweatdropped. He had more important things to worry about like the Kansai Magical Association and one possible spy. However, Negi had the distinct impression he had little choice in the matter.

He was right.

“I told you before, didn’t I? I’m going to make sure you act like a kid every once in a while. Youth power and all that,” Naruto said as he dragged Negi away.

Negi sighed. Naruto-san’s grip was like iron. There was no sense in trying to get away.

Plus, maybe, just maybe, he wanted to play a game for once.

xXx

Sakurazaki Setsuna was familiar with failure.

That did not mean she had ever learned to cope with it.

Tonight, once again, she had failed Konoka-sama.

After some initial mishaps, she had been able to explain her circumstances to Negi-sensei. However, she had been unable to stop an agent from the Kansai Magical Association from taking Konoka-sama. A fierce fight had followed in which they had thankfully been able to rescue her. Her master was safe... for now.

Setsuna sighed.

She was supposed to protect her, yet her master had been taken right under her nose. She hadn't thought their foes would be bold enough to attempt to kidnap her.

No, that was no excuse.

In the end, Konoka-sama almost ended in the hands of the woman from the Kansai Magical Association. That was all that mattered. It had been fortunate that Negi-sensei and Kagurazaka-san were there to lend their support.

Setsuna doubted things would have gone as well as they did had they not been there.

Still, she could not afford to rely on them all the time. Konoka-sama was still in danger. She could not lower her guard even for an instant.

Standing guard atop of the hotel, the swordswoman was determined to go through the night without sleep.

Nothing would get past her tonight. 

Nothing at all.

“That was a very close thing today."

Setsuna’s eyes widened by a fraction before narrowing in anger. In a flash, her blade was drawn.

The events from earlier tonight still weighed on her mind. She did not stop to assess the situation. She just attacked the mysterious intruder. Ki flowed through her body, empowering her every move.

Her blade flashed.

Zanganken

Rock Cleaving Sword

One of the Shinmei-Ryu's signature moves.

When used by someone of her caliber, it was certainly not something even a skilled fighter would be able to brush off.

Yet Setsuna hit nothing but air.

“That’s really no way to greet a teacher.”

Setsuna’s eyes widened. Behind her! When had he even-

Wait.

She knew that voice.

She had heard it before.

She heard it every week in fact.

“Naruto-sensei,” she said without moving.

“Yep, it is your favorite teacher.” The blonde grinned as he hopped into her field of view.

“Or maybe not," Naruto said, scratching the back of his head. "I mean, you did try to kill me just now. Am I working you girls too hard? Are the laps too much?”

“Yes!... I mean no. I mean... I apologize for my actions, Naruto-sensei!” Flustered, Setsuna could only bow in apology.

Naruto blinked. He hadn’t expected that much.

Setsuna was a serious girl.

“It's fine. I was just messing with you a little. I am not angry at all. Honest. If I got angry at every person who tried to kill me, I'd have fewer friends."

Setsuna was not quite sure how to reply to that.

She had known Naruto-sensei was part of the hidden side of the world for a while. The way he carried himself was not lost on her, and his show of killing intent to scare the frogs on the train had all but confirmed it.

However, that was as far as her knowledge went.

She had not asked the headmaster about the newest teacher. She had no reason to. If Naruto-sensei was dangerous to the school or the students, he would have never been allowed inside in the first place. Ergo, he wasn't. Besides, she was a simple bodyguard. It was not her place to ask such things.

She had her duty. That was all that mattered.

“All the same, I apologize,” she said. “I was surprised and reacted poorly. I should not have done so."

Naruto just waved her off. “It's fine. It's fine. I should have made more noise. You have gone through enough surprises tonight.”

The comment was outwardly harmless, yet there was something about the way he said it. His eyes. His tone. Plus, there were his words earlier. It was almost like he…

“You know,” Setsuna said. No, that was not it. “You were there!”

The accusation was plain to hear in her voice.

Naruto had to admit, Setsuna had a pretty good glare. Still, he just smiled.

“Yep. Saw the whole thing,” Naruto said. “That monkey woman almost kidnapped Konoka.”

Setsuna's grip on her sword tightened.

He was someone who was good enough to sneak behind her.

He was someone who was good enough to dodge her blade.

He was all that, yet...

“You didn’t help.”

Crows did not growl, but if they did, the sound would have been quite similar to what came out of Setsuna’s mouth then.

Naruto whistled, impressed. “Nice. There is not even a bit of killing intent leaking out. You're pretty disciplined.”

“I do not need your approval,” Setsuna said, nearly spitting out the words. “What I want is to know why did you not lend your aid to us last night? My lady was in danger. One of your students was in danger. I do not know for what purpose you came to Mahora, but I never would have thought Konoe-sama could hire someone who would just stand by while a student was in danger.”

Naruto could feel the anger emanating from Setsuna.

Literally.

He was not quite sure when did it start, but he was fully capable of feeling other people's emotions. A side-effect of pumping too much of Kurama’s chakra through his system, he guessed. At some point, it had changed from an ability he could only use when Kurama’s chakra flowed through him into an ability that was on all the time.

It was dead useful, but also quite embarrassing at times.

There were certain things he would rather not have known.

Point was, Naruto had a pretty good idea of just how angry Setsuna was, and just how much the girl cared for Konoka. He could feel the guilt eating her away and the anger just waiting for something or someone to lash out against.

It made her self-control all the more impressive.

Naruto decided he liked Setsuna.

“Don’t get things wrong,” he began explaining. “My job may be similar to yours, but it's not quite the same.”

Setsuna frowned. Similar to hers? Did that mean he was a bodyguard like her?

“Negi-sensei,” she realized, her eyes widening. “You were hired to protect him.”

Naruto nodded.

“That’s all the more reason why you should have lend your aid to us!” This time, Setsuna did shout. “If your charge was in danger, how could you stand by?”

Naruto scratched the back of his head and sighed. “Like I said, don’t get it wrong. My job is not to babysit Negi. He is here for a reason. This is the last step in his training. If I help him out at every turn, I would just be undermining him.”

Setsuna would not be deterred so easily. “Even so, the circumstances tonight were not normal. Who knows what could have happened to Konoka-sama?”

Naruto shrugged. “If things got too bad, I would have intervened. You rescued her before it got to that point. It was a good experience for Negi. I know it may seem a little harsh, but harsh works really well plenty of times. Haven’t you ever been put in a dangerous situation for training? ”

Setsuna shivered in spite of herself. The image of a woman flashed through her mind.

Tsuruko Aoyama.

A powerful woman.

A horrible, terrible woman.

Setsuna still had nightmares about what that woman called training. Following Konoka to Tokyo was one of the happiest moments of her life. Knowing that from that moment on she would be able to protect her master had been one of the reasons, but being away from Tsuruko-sama played no small part in it.

“I suppose certain teachers may employ those methods.” Horrible evil methods. “However don’t you think it was too big of a risk?”

“I could handle it,” Naruto said with complete confidence in himself. He did not bother to elaborate.

Setsuna clenched her teeth.

How could he be so casual? Konoka-sama had… Konoka-sama had…

“Setsuna,” Naruto said, his voice serious. “Are you angry at me or are you just looking for reasons to take it out on me?”

Setsuna opened her mouth to retort but Naruto beat her to it.

“You didn't fail."

Setsuna flinched.

"That's a lie!"

She already knew the truth.

She was weak.

Too weak to properly protect Konoka-sama.

Too weak to ever be at her side.

Naruto’s face softened. “Hey now, don’t go all gloomy on me. As far as combat ability goes, you’re pretty good for your age. For any age for the matter. Definitely better than Negi right now. I can tell that much from what little you showed during the battle.”

“I thank you for your praise,” the swordswoman said with a bitter smile. “However, the night's results speak for themselves.”

Naruto nodded. “They do."

"I am glad yo-"

"You saved Konoka," Naruto said, cutting her off. "You kick ass, Setsuna. I would offer you a job if I wasn’t sure you’d turn it down. You care a lot about the person you are protecting. That’s pretty rare.”

As someone who had an army of ninja working for him, Naruto was an expert on the subject. Some bodyguard missions were a pain in the ass because clients could be entitled dicks.

“But that’s also the problem,” he added.

Setsuna was not quite sure how to describe it, but something changed when Naruto said that. The air around him suddenly seemed heavier, and she found herself straightening her back.

“I will not deny I care about Konoka-ojou-sama, but I do not let that interfere with my work. I always keep a professional distance from her.”

Naruto’s blue eyes peered into hers. “Yeah, _that’s_ the problem. You aren’t keeping a professional distance. You are just avoiding her. That doesn't quite mesh with your job description."

Rebellion flared in Setsuna’s eyes.  She opened her mouth to speak.

Naruto’s eyes narrowed by a fraction.

The rebellion died a quick death.

“Just look at today. You defeated the monkey woman and drove her away. Awesome job there, but what about now? You are her classmate. You're even in the same group. You could be right next to her. Instead, you are here. The person you are supposed to protect is completely out of sight. What happens if someone sneaks past you? What happens if someone already did? Can you really protect someone if you keep running away from her?”

Setsuna reeled back as if physically struck. She had tried to keep her distance from Konoka, ever since that day…

“I…” Setsuna stopped, unsure of what to say. The monkey woman was gone, but she could return. She had managed to kidnap Konoka once. If she tried again, would she be able to stop her?

The monkey woman was gone, but she could return. She had managed to kidnap Konoka once. If she tried again, would she be able to stop her?

Anger, shock, and grudging realization. Naruto felt them all.

“Okay, that’s good enough for now,” Naruto said, slapping his hands together. “I am not going to ask you to suddenly change or deal with your issues right now, but try to stay closer to Konoka. That girl cares for you. You are being cruel to her by keeping your distance. That kind of thing gets lonely. Trust me on that one.”

With that last push, Naruto turned away from her and prepared to leave.

Before he leaped from the rooftop, Naruto stopped as if he had just remembered something.

“Oh! Also, please keep this a secret from Negi for now. I suppose I should say something like, ‘the time is not yet right’, or ‘he is too young to know’, but really I’m kind of having fun here.”

The expression on Naruto’s face would better suit a kid asking his parents to buy him a toy. It was utterly at odds with the man who had been lecturing her a moment before. Setsuna found herself at loss as to how to answer that, so in true Japanese fashion, she went for a sweatdrop and a nervous nod.

Setsuna valued tradition.

xXx

Things had not gone exactly well for Negi so far, but he had discovered one bright spot, a silver lining.

He liked hot springs.

Baths were annoying and time-consuming. Hot springs, though? Letting his body rest in hot water? That was relaxing.

Private.

Peaceful.

According to the timetable they had made for the students, it was the teacher’s time, which meant Negi had, at least until another teacher arrived, the hot springs all for himself.  

Negi couldn’t remember the last time he had some time alone since arriving at Mahora. He smiled and resolved to enjoy it. It was nice to not have Asuna around wanting to bathe him.

The joys of not having hit puberty yet.

A content sigh escaped his lips. “I could get used to this.”

“It is pretty nice.”

“I am in full agree…ment…” Negi trailed off. His cunning mind detected something was not quite right.

Fact One: It was the teacher’s time. None but the teachers should be here.

Fact Two: The voice did not belong to a teacher.

Fact Three: The voice belonged to a student.

Conclusion: One of the students had sneaked in.

Appropriate Course of Action:  Do not panic. Turn around and use authority as a teacher to make the student leave and continue to enjoy the hot springs.

Satisfied with his decided course of action, Negi turned around.

And found nothing at all.

There was no one else besides him in the hot springs.

Negi blinked.

"Huh?"

xXx

Coincidence was a curious thing.

For example, Nara Park, a popular tourist destination in Kyoto. It was one of Japan's oldest parks and quite famous for its deer.

Nara and deer.

Naruto wondered what Shikamaru would think about it.

Knowing that guy, he would probably just call it troublesome.

Yep, definitely troublesome.

“Why am I here again?”

Speaking of troublesome.

Naruto did not stop to turn around and face Misa. Instead, he just kept walking. “Because I learned that if I leave you alone, you'll try to sneak into the hot springs with Negi.”

It had been a good thing he had arrived just in time to carry the girl away before Negi had seen her.

“Hey, I was not going to do anything bad," Misa protested. "I just wanted to develop... skinship. Yes, skinship! Besides, aren’t guys supposed to high-five each other over stuff like this?”

“You mean getting lucky with an older girl while still being prepubescent.”

Misa nodded vigorously. “Yes!”

“Well, I suppose the bro-code does say something like that, but my job says protect Negi. That includes protecting him from beautiful teenagers trying to seduce him.”

“You are so not a bro,” Misa grumbled, folding her arms under her chest. “Wait, you think I am beautiful?”

Naruto, being Naruto, answered as bluntly and honestly as possible. “Who wouldn’t?”

Misa’s face went red.

“Anyway,” Misa said nervously, a finger toying with her hair. “That’s not what I meant. Why are we in Nara Park?”

“There was an attack yesterday,” Naruto said, drawing a look of surprise from Misa, her blush forgotten. “There were two attackers. One of them felt like a mercenary. From what the principal told me, the faction against western mages is not really that big, so it makes sense for them to hire outside help."

Misa raised an eyebrow. “And how does that lead us here?”

Naruto stopped walking and carefully looked at some trees. They were now very far away from the crowds. “Well, I figure Negi is going to have his hands full without me adding to his troubles. I might as well make sure she isn’t going to hire anyone fro- Found it!”

Misa blinked as Naruto suddenly ran up to the space between two trees. He closed his hand around something in the air and _pulled_.

Misa's eyes went wide.

There was a hole in the air.

It was like someone had grabbed a pair of scissors and messily cut a hole in the space between the trees. Through the hole, she saw not the green of the park, but rather a stone path leading to a building.

“Nice illusion,” Naruto commented, rubbing his chin. “Come on. Let’s get inside before it repairs.”

Misa just stared as Naruto walked into the rip. She stared for fifteen full seconds. Finally, she sighed and followed. As soon as she walked through the hole, she found herself standing next to Naruto.

They were no longer alone.

Surrounding them were over a dozen people, all of them armed with very sharp and pointy objects. They were men and women of varying ages. Some of them even looked close to her age.

All of them wore steel-plated headbands with the Kanji for Ninja on them.               

They were also looking at them in a decidedly unfriendly way.

Misa gulped.

Her first instinct was to get the hell away from there which she would have done had she not noticed the way one of the ninja stood gaping like a fish, his eyes focused on Naruto.

Naruto blinked before something flashed through his eyes. “Ah, you are a sensor type. Ichiyo or something, right? That makes things easier. I thought it was going to be hard to prove who I am.”

At his words, the other ninja turned to the man Naruto had called a sensor.

The sensor nodded.

As one, they kneeled.

“Welcome, Uzumaki-sama!”

Misa stared.

“Come on. There is no need for all of that,” Naruto said, although the look on his face made it clear he was not exactly displeased with the attention.

“Hey, Ichiyo,” Naruto said.

The man, Ichiyo, looked startled at being addressed directly. “Y-Yes, Uzumaki-sama!”

“This is our first time here, so we need a guide,” he explained. “I take it you can lead us to her office.”

Ichiyo looked at Misa. “It is not a problem, my Lord, but the girl-”

Naruto waved a hand, cutting him off. “It's fine. She's cool."

“Of course, Uzumaki-sama," Ichiyo said, somehow managing to bow even lower. "Please, follow me.”

The man stood up and led them inside the building.

It was surprisingly normal. That was Misa's first impression of it.

She had never been to an office building before, but she felt that it would probably look a lot like this one. There were even cubicles. It was remarkably unremarkable considering how hidden it was.

Except for the ninja of course.

There were ninja all over the place. Some of them argued over the phone over the price of… something. Misa couldn’t quite pick it up. Others were carrying large stacks of papers. One seemed to be in the process of stamping a seal on a document and had a big pile of papers next to him.

All of them, however, stopped what they were doing the moment Naruto walked in.

If Naruto was in any way bothered by the attention, he didn't show it. The trio just walked straight to the elevator's door. Ichiyo stayed behind, and Naruto hit the button for the top floor.

The moment they got there, Misa immediately noticed the top floor was not quite normal.

For starters, it was a garden.

The entire floor was one huge room turned into a flower-filled garden, with a stone path leading to a large desk at the end of the room.

Naruto whistled. “This is even nicer than my office.”

"Naruto?" The woman on the desk cried out, her eyes wide as she realized that yes, that was Uzumaki Naruto in front of her

Nevertheless, she laughed and rose to meet Naruto in a hug.

"Nice to see you too, Ino," Naruto said as he returned the hug.

The woman, Ino, had long blonde hair tied in a ponytail and bright blue eyes. Misa guessed she was probably around the same age as Naruto. Her body was slimmer than Shizuna-sensei’s, but her chest had absolutely nothing to envy of her.

Misa was not jealous of the way the woman hugged Naruto. Not at all.

"Seriously, how are you even here?" Ino asked after letting go of Naruto.

“It's a long story,” Naruto said.

“I can’t believe you didn't send any notice beforehand... please, tell me this isn't a surprise inspection, because if it is, let me tell you this whole garden floor is way cheaper than it looks."

Naruto chuckled. “Nah, nothing like that. I am just taking a small mission. Nothing serious. Oh right, I haven't introduced you yet!”

Naruto stepped to the side, putting Misa in Ino's line of sight.

“Misa, this is Yamanaka Ino. We used to be classmates back in the Academy. Ino, this Kakizaki Misa. I am her PE teacher now.”

This was probably the time when Misa should say something like “Nice to meet you," but judging by the look on Ino’s face, staying quiet was probably the better alternative.

“You didn’t,” Ino said, slowly and mechanically turning to Naruto. Her tone was almost begging.

Naruto scratched his cheek and looked away. “Well…”  

“You did!” She accused, pointing a finger at him. “Damn it, Naruto! I don’t blame you for sneaking out once in a while, but an off-world mission? What were you thinking? How hasn't everyone noticed you’re gone?”

Naruto opened his mouth to answer, but Ino beat him to it. “No, don’t even tell me! You left a shadow clone, right? You left a shadow clone to do your job?”

“Shadow Clones actually,” Naruto replied, unconcerned by Ino’s outburst.

By now, Ino had started to pace around the room. “Damn it, what am I supposed to do now? How many people have already seen you here?”

“Ino,” Naruto said, this time with a little more force.

It was enough.

Ino stopped and listened.

For a ninja of Konoha, the Hokage’s word was law.

“You’re worrying too much,” Naruto said, smiling.

Ino looked like she wanted to say something, but a single look from Naruto stopped her. “Look, I wouldn’t have done something like this, if I wasn’t sure I could go back right away. I am not an idiot. No one is going to find out unless you tell... not for a few more weeks at least.”

“But what about all the ninja downstairs?” she hissed. “They saw you. Sure, I can order the ones from Konoha to keep quiet, but the other ones are just going to blab about it as soon as they can.”

"Don't worry," Naruto said, waving a hand in front of his face. "It is going to be a long time before anyone downstairs returns to our world. I, well, my clone signed the last transport permit about a week ago, and according to the Alliance guidelines, which I signed, each term in this world lasts about four months. That means it's going to be months before anyone here leaves, right?"

Ino nodded.

Visible relief appeared on Naruto’s face. “Okay, good. I wasn’t sure I had gotten that right. You'd be surprised at how easy it is to get confused when there are dozens of you running around.”

Ino’s right eye twitched, and for a moment, she felt supreme empathy for Sakura.

“You’re not filling me with confidence here, boss.”

Naruto sighed. “Why do people always doubt my awesome?”

“Probably because you say stuff like that in the first place,” muttered Misa.

“And you did reveal yourself to every single ninja here,” Ino added.

“If anyone asks, I can just say I sent a clone to visit you,” Naruto said, rubbing the back of his head. “I send my clones everywhere. It's my thing. It's always been my thing.”

Ino opened her mouth to object but stopped herself. “That… could work. It is bound to cause suspicion, but no one would be able to prove otherwise.”

“And that's why I wear the hat!”

"If brains were the qualifier, Shikamaru would be the one wearing it," Ino teased before growing serious. “Now, as fun as it is to see you again, I gather this is not a social visit.”

She glanced at Misa as she said this.

"Something like that," Naruto said, nodding. "I need to know if you have gotten any mission requests from the Kansai Magical association, and also… I guess they would probably call it a retrieval mission. Yeah, all retrieval mission requests this place has received during the past weeks."

Ino wanted to ask, but the look in Naruto's eyes told her he was actually serious about this. She quickly used the intercom to make the request. Moments later, a ninja came into the room with a large stack of papers in his hands.

“Man, this is a lot to go through,” Naruto said, even as he started to look over the papers with great speed.

Ino shrugged as she too started looking over the papers. “What can I say? Business has been good.”

Tired of being silent, Misa decided to speak up. “So, is this some kind of ninja office or something?”

Naruto didn’t say anything and just continued to go over the documents. For Misa and even Ino, it was weird to see him being so interested in paperwork.

“Oh, well, if this guy brought you here, I might as well tell you,” Ino said. She waited for a few seconds and took Naruto’s lack of protest as approval.

“First, just how much has he told you about ninja in general?” Ino asked.

“He told me that you are from another world and…” Misa’s eyebrows scrunched in thought. “Actually that’s pretty much it."

“Yeah, that’s Naruto, alright. Trust him to be completely open while saying nothing important,” Ino scoffed.

Naruto didn’t react and continued looking at the papers.

It was really creeping Ino out.

“Anyway, yes, we come from another world. You can think of us as extra-dimensional mercenaries. We perform certain tasks for the right price.”

“What type of tasks?” Misa couldn’t help but ask. She had seen enough movies to know what ninja did.

“Probably nothing as horrible as what you’re thinking,” Ino replied with an amused smile on her face. “Bodyguard duty, espionage, bounty hunting, dog walking, etc.”

“Dog walking?” Misa echoed. Somehow that did not fit with her mental image of ninja.

Ino nodded.

“You'd be surprised at what rich people will do for their pets," she said. "In the past, we didn't bother with other worlds, but that has changed. We have branched out. This world, in particular, is suitable for our needs."

While super-powered people were present in Mundus Vetus, their presence was less prominent compared to places like Mundus Magicus. This allowed them to move in with minimal friction.

"In order to better conduct our business in this world, we built bases like this one all over the world."

After all, it was hard to hire someone whose offices were in another dimension.

“So there are buildings like this all over Japan?” Misa asked.

Ino shook her head. “That would require way too many ninja. This is our only base in Japan. We handle all Japanese mission requests right here.” She then added, "Well, even though I say that, we only handle D-Rank and C-Rank mission requests. More important missions require approval from our world."

Misa looked like she was about to ask something else, but was cut off by Naruto’s loud yell.

“Found it!” Naruto said, jumping from his seat with his fist held high, a piece of paper clutched in his hand.

“You really don’t change, do you?” Ino asked, amused and fighting to keep a straight face. Naruto always did lighten the mood.

“Like Ichiraku Ramen, you can't improve me!”

“I am sure many people would beg to differ,” Ino said dryly. “So are you finally going to tell me what this is all about? I mean, it is not like I am in charge of all our operations in Asia or anything like that.”

“Fine, hear this.” Naruto cleared his throat and began reading. “Retrieval mission… blah, blah, blah,… services are requested in the retrieval of one middle-school aged female for… eh, the rest is not important.”

Ino raised an eyebrow. “Naruto, dear, you do know not all our brains work in the same unique frequency as yours, right?”

Misa hid a giggle behind her hands.

“Funny. Look, I got hired to protect an English school teacher. Long story short: The teacher is a mage-in-training. He teaches at Mahora. Yes, that Mahora,” Naruto confirmed, noticing the change in Ino’s expression.

“There’s this Anti-Western Mage faction in the Kansai Magical Association, and they have been acting up due to his presence, but that’s just an excuse. What they really want is to get their hands on the daughter of the chief of the Kansai Association. This,” he said, holding up the mission request, “is a mission to trick us into helping them with the Kidnap-Konoka plan. Got all of that?”

“What?” Misa and Ino asked at the same time.

"I know, right? It's like I am in a Princess Fu movie... again!”

Ino, far more used to dealing with Naruto, had managed to understand most of what he said. Western mages and schools, she did not care much about. Someone trying to screw them over? That was another matter entirely.

“Why would they try to involve us? Why like this? They can’t honestly expect it to work. Even if this was disguised as a C-Rank, it would have never passed the preliminary background check.”

"You'd be surprised at what can get past a background check," Naruto said.

A C-Rank could become an A-Rank in the blink of an eye because a certain bridge builder hadn't been entirely honest. No one knew that better than him.

"Plus, I managed to get a good of the woman behind this yesterday," Naruto said, frowning as he recalled the emotions from the woman from the Kansai Association. "She's desperate. She doesn't have much support. She probably figured this was worth a try. If we hadn't noticed, we'd have ended up dragged alongside her plot. Not really well-thought-out as far as plans go, but she is determined. I will give her that.”

“I am really feeling out of my depth here,” Misa couldn’t help but say. Factions? Shady deals? First, it was fantasy, and now she was dealing with politics.

Genre shifts should come with more warnings.

“Don’t worry about it, Misa,” Naruto said cheerfully, putting an arm around her which elicited a blush from her. “I am taking care of things now, so it's all going to be fine. Just watch me kick ass.”

It was strange how comforting that statement was.

“I’ll assume from that statement, you want me to let you take care of the situation as opposed to doing the usual and sending some ninja to rough up the woman and let her know we do not appreciate being dragged into someone else’s war?” Ino asked with raised eyebrow.

One war had been enough for her, thank you very much.

Naruto thought about it for a moment. Sure, he could send his ninja right now, and that would be the end of it, but then Negi wouldn’t learn anything. However, he just couldn't let someone try to make his ninja look bad.

Decisions. Decisions.

A stray thought hit his head and a large grin full of mischief spread across his face.

“Okay, here is what we are going to do.”

xXx

Little more than an hour had passed when Naruto and Misa walked out of the building and back into Nara Park. They walked in silence for a few moments until Misa spoke up.

“You… you are not just a ninja, are you?” She asked. She was not blind. The way all the people in there had treated him was plain to see. Even that Ino woman who was apparently in charge still took orders from him.

Naruto offered her a smile that made her think of a fox. “Of course I'm not just any ninja. I'm the Number #1 Surprising Ninja in the world!”

Misa believed it.

xXx

In Between - End

xXx

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like the chapter title implies, the scenes here take place in between events of the manga. 
> 
> The first scene with Negi takes place after they bring the students back to the hotel but before the hot springs incident with Setsuna. The second scene takes place after the first attempt to kidnap Konoka, and the meeting with Ino takes place a bit before and during Negi's "date" with Nodoka. 
> 
> Speaking of, Ino is here! Bet you weren't expecting that. 
> 
> Since Ninja are taking missions from Mundus Vetus in this fic, it made sense to me for them to have at least one office in Japan and Ino is a familiar enough face for the job. Since this fic takes place a few years after the war, Ino's a jounin now and in charge of overseeing their operations in Asia. It's a pretty important job. 
> 
> Ino also addresses the elephant in the room that is Naruto just suddenly taking a mission and leaving. Well, Naruto has a reason to be as confident as he is in his ability to return the second he is needed, but it won't be revealed until after the Kyoto Arc. However, I'm sure some of you can already guess it. By the way, although in canon Kishimoto had Naruto be completely consumed by the job in spite of having clones helping him (likely due to his experiences as a Jump Mangaka, the most time-consuming job ever), that never really made much sense to me. Here it is the opposite. With his clones, he is the Kage with the most free time in the history of Kage which is a big part of the reason why he needed to stretch his legs.
> 
> As an aside, I got to say this chapter was very annoying to clean up. I had a lot of stuff to fix. Some of the stuff I erased was pretty cringy. Speaking of stuff I erased, I omitted the frog scene from this chapter and just had other characters mention it in passing. 
> 
> There was honestly little point in showing Naruto scaring some frogs with low level killing intent. 
> 
> As always leave a comment and be sure to check out my other stuff if you enjoyed this. 
> 
> Expect the next chapter in one month!


	6. The Games Begin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A few reviewers have asked Hinata and the status of her relationship with Naruto (and Naruto's romantic prospects in general). I figure I might as well address it here as well.
> 
> I have said this before, but it bears repeating. This story was written before the manga ended. The war hadn't even started, and Kurama's name was still a mystery. The Last wasn't even remotely a thing, and indeed, The Last hasn't happened here.
> 
> Not yet at least.
> 
> The backstory for this fic diverges from the canon one in quite a few points (since the manga wasn't finished back then) which will be explored as the fic goes on. Naruto already being Hokage at age 18 is not the least of those. As a consequence, Naruto and Hinata aren't really dating here.
> 
> This chapter will shed some light on why that is.
> 
> As an aside, props to Kishimoto for ending it in NaruHina. Nothing against Sakura, but NaruSaku is the height of meh to me.
> 
> As for the final pairings of this story, honestly, it's up in the air. Feel free to let me know your preferences.
> 
> Now, on to the chapter!

xXx

The Games Begin

xXx

For the first time in a very long time, Naruto found himself at a loss.

"I don't know what to do!"

The one who shouted that was not Naruto, but rather a certain ten-year-old teacher. The child's face alternated between deep rep and pale white. His eyes were wide and scared and had he less control over himself a few tears would have already escaped his eyes.

During his first month as a teacher, Naruto had let Negi know he could come to him if he ever needed help. His door was always open. Naruto had made sure Negi understood that.

However, Naruto hadn't really expected Negi to take him up on it.

He knew one or two things about lonely orphans and a level self-sufficiency was pretty much a requirement.

Negi was very self-sufficient. That was plain to see. The boy wouldn't ask for help. He wouldn't open up to others about his problems or talk about his feelings unless he had no other choice. If Negi ever came to him for help, Naruto had expected it to be due to a pretty big threat in which case he would have no choice but to reveal himself.

Naruto had definitely not expected for Negi to come to him for romantic advice. The boy had dashed into his room like the Juubi was chasing after him and spilled his guts.

"After what she said, I... I have no idea what to do Naruto-san," Negi said with a soft whine, his gaze firmly looking at the floor.

Naruto had also not expected Nodoka – shy, innocent Nodoka – to declare her feelings for Negi.

Seriously, what was up with that?

Naruto understood the girls liked their teacher. He wasn't blind. Ayaka pretty much threw herself at Negi at every turn, and the way Makie looked at Negi sometimes was more than obvious. However, there was a very big difference between simple (very blatant but also simple) affection and a real love confession.

Overly affectionate the girls may be, but this was a bit too much.

Seriously, Negi was freaking ten!

"Damn, who knew Nodoka had it in her?"

"Kakizaki-san!" Negi shouted, nearly leaping out of his skin. His finger rose to point at the girl and his eyes went wide. "How did you get here?"

"Sensei, I was here from the beginning," Misa replied, flicking her hair over her shoulder. "Didn't you notice?"

She wasn't lying. They had just come back from their trip when Negi burst into his room and blurted out everything. Naruto wasn't surprised the boy hadn't noticed, but he really needed to work on his situational awareness.

"T-t-then you h-heard?" The boy stuttered out, somehow managing to pale even more.

"It's fine," Naruto cut in before Misa could get a chance to tease Negi. The purple-haired girl frowned at him. "Don't worry about her. In fact, she was just leaving and will not tell anyone about anything she may have heard here. Right?"

He looked intently at Misa as he said this. The girl gulped and nodded.

"Yep. Naruto-sensei is right," she said, nodding very quickly. "My lips are sealed, sensei. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go see my group before they start asking questions. Bye!"

With that, the girl quickly hurried out of the room.

Negi looked at her go before turning to Naruto. "She really won't...?"

"She's too scared of running extra laps to risk telling anyone," Naruto said, hoping to quell Negi's doubts. Of course, it wouldn't be bad if he had an extra talk with Misa later on.

Even if he was young, Negi was still a teacher and Nodoka was still a student. If word got out of what happened, it would be a scandal.

"Now, as for your problem..." Naruto sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

Why did it have to be a romance thing?

Naruto could say without boasting that he was pretty damn awesome at several things. Most of them had to do with kicking ass and taking names, but he was also damn good at taking care of plants, and he had the garden to prove it back home.

He also knew how to make a damn good cup of instant ramen.

However, his experience with romance was... limited.

When he was young, there had been Sakura. She was a crush, and it had never really gone anywhere. It had hurt a bit to admit it back then, but she liked Sasuke.

For better or worse.

When he had been traveling with Jiraiya, there had been no time for that stuff. They moved too quickly for Naruto to form any serious attachment. Of course, that hadn't stopped his master from trying to impart his knowledge of the fairer sex upon him.

There had been books and diagrams and manikins.

There had also been a final test which had been Jiraya managing to get him drunk and throwing him into the finest brothel he knew (which was pretty damn fine).

To this day, Naruto still didn't know whether he wanted to kick the pervert in the face for that stunt or hug him.

After his training trip, Naruto had been too busy with the Akatsuki and Sasuke. The idea of having a romantic relationship with anyone had been firmly labeled as "When Everything is Over" in his mind.

Then Hinata had happened.

That was another confession Naruto hadn't seen coming.

To his surprise, once the whole Pain thing was over and he had the time to process it, Naruto found he wasn't exactly adverse to the idea. Hinata had guts and he liked that. Naruto didn't know enough about love to say for sure if he felt for her as strongly as she seemed to feel for him, but he really wouldn't mind trying the whole boyfriend-girlfriend thing with her.

However, first things came first. There was a village to rebuild, a conspiracy to stop, and a war to win. After that, there would be time for the other stuff. Maybe he'd even get to use some of those ridiculously cheesy lines Ero-Sennin taught him. That's what he told himself back then, and that's what he had told Hinata.

He would answer her feelings when everything was over.

Hinata had accepted it.

Then the Hokage thing happened which was totally awesome but also brought a couple of problems.

For better and worse, Naruto had made himself an icon during the war. He had been a huge factor in their victory and earned the respect and admiration (grudging or otherwise) of everyone.

That was something that could not be ignored.

After the damage caused by the War, the ninja world needed the sheer charisma and power Uzumaki Naruto wielded. That was the reason why the Leaf had picked him as Hokage over more traditionally qualified candidates like Kakashi. They needed his ability to understand and make friends with people, and they needed his ability to casually blow up mountain ranges if needed.

Just in case.

Thus, Uzumaki Naruto, fresh out of the war, had become one of the youngest Kage ever, and like always, he had exceeded expectations. He had been of great aid towards smoothing out the relationship between the Hidden Villages and the Daimyos and helped the restoration of the Frost Country after it had been almost completely destroyed during the war.

And the only cost had been his chances at a normal relationship.

Because he wasn't just Uzumaki Naruto anymore. He was one of the most influential people in the Elemental Countries, if not the most influential one. For people in his position, relationships sent messages. Relationships were alliances. Relationships were bargains.

Honestly, Shikamaru and Kakashi really knew how to suck the joy out of some things.

While they were a bit overly cynical, they weren't exactly wrong. The sheer amount of clan leaders and nobles who had not-so-subtly hinted to him that their daughters were without a husband and of marriageable age was ridiculous. The moment Naruto showed the slightest bit of interest in a woman was the moment wedding plans started being made without his knowledge and behind-the-scenes alliances shifted and twisted, often with consequences that were as annoying as they were embarrassing.

Naruto knew that from experience.

As much as he liked being a Kage that had not been a fun visit to the Iron County even if he had technically gotten everything he wanted out of it.

Shikamaru probably still had the video. The bastard.

Regardless, his entirely too complex situation meant any chance of taking Hinata out on anything resembling a normal date was completely doomed from the start. If he tried to start a relationship with Hinata, he wouldn't be dating her. He was the Hokage. She was the heiress of the Hyuuga clan. There was only one path.

He would be marrying her right from the start.

He would be starting a family.

That possibility was scary in a way not even Kaguya with all her power had managed to be. He didn't even know how to be a boyfriend. What did he know about being a husband?

A father?

Sage protect him. Kids. What if he messed up with them? What if he wasn't a good parent because he never had parents?

There were some failures even Uzumaki Naruto was scared of.

Thus, he couldn't have a relationship. Not yet. He wasn't ready for that.

Other girls would have cut their losses. Hinata waited for him which made Naruto feel guilty about the whole thing.

No matter how weirdly supportive Hinata's dad was, going as far as to tell he could take as much time as he needed to think about it.

Naruto sighed and shook his head. He was going to have to deal with that political mess and his own doubts eventually, but right now, there was someone who needed his help even if he was not really suited for this stuff.

Besides, there was one upside to the whole thing.

Negi Springfield was not Uzumaki Naruto.

"Negi, you're ten," Naruto said, drumming his fingers against the table.

"Ah, yes?" Negi blinked, a bit confused by the statement.

"What I mean is that you're way too young to even be thinking about love," Naruto explained.

"I understand, b-but Nodoka-san said... her confession-"

"Negi, do you love Nodoka?" Naruto cut in.

"What? N-NO! O-of course not!" Negi panicked, trying to stand while his arms flailed around wildly. He would have probably fallen had Naruto not grabbed him by the shoulder.

"Careful," Naruto warned. "Don't panic. It's just me here. Just think carefully and answer my questions, okay?"

A bit hesitantly, Negi nodded.

Naruto offered him a smile. "Good. Next question, do you hate her?"

"No! Not at all," Negi said, more calmly but still with a lot of emotion in his voice.

"Okay, so you don't hate her but you don't love her. What about friendship? Do you want to be her friend?" Naruto asked.

Negi thought deeply about the question. His brow furrowed in thought. "I think that... yes,. I mostly know her as a student, but I can tell she is a good person... someone I would like to have as a friend."

"That's it then," Naruto said, slapping his hands together.

Negi blinked. "Eh?"

"Negi," Naruto said seriously. "I already said it, didn't I? You are too young to be thinking about relationships."

"Nodoka confessed to you, but that doesn't mean you have to force yourself to answer her feelings," Naruto added before Negi could object. "She wouldn't appreciate it if you lied and told her you loved her only to avoid hurting her after she bared her feelings to you. Don't you think so?"

"I guess so..." Negi said, looking down. "Doing that... would be unfair to Nodoka-san."

"Exactly," Naruto agreed. "Trust me. Fake confessions are the worst."

That bit he knew from experience.

"But even so... I don't want to hurt her," Negi said, voice soft.

Naruto sighed. "If you really don't want to hurt her just be careful with what you say to her."

"What I say to her?" Negi echoed, confused.

"If you really, really want to avoid hurting her at all costs, then just don't hurt her. As long as the answer you give her is not an outright rejection, she will probably be happy because it means she still has a chance," Naruto reasoned, thinking of his own limited experience. "Just say you want to be friends first."

Negi nodded. It made sense. "I see... but even so that feels..."

Naruto patted Negi in the back. He understood. After someone bravely declared her true feelings, not being able to answer in kind felt bad.

"Yeah," Naruto said, wishing he had something to drink. "Get used to it. Romance never really gets easier."

"I was afraid of that."

xXx

Night fell on the second day of the trip.

For Negi and Class 3-A, it had been a semi-peaceful day. There had been no more accidents or attempts to kidnap Konoka.

Perhaps because of that, the night was shaping up to be an eventful one.

Underneath the teacher's noses, a special event was taking place between the members of Class 3-A.

The War of Lips.

Five pairs of students –one pair from each group– were stealthily making their way to Negi's room. Once they were there, the girls would get the opportunity to… well, the event title made it obvious.

For the privilege of kissing their teacher, the students had armed themselves and were ready to do pillowy combat with each other. Asakura Kazumi, the organizer of the event, had even managed to set up cameras around the hotel in order to stream it directly to the other students.

If the teachers knew what was going on, they would put an end to it immediately. Sadly, they were unaware.

Except for one teacher.

It was not Negi. The child was blissfully unaware of the war for his lips. Rather, it was Uzumaki Naruto who was aware of the proceedings. How had he found out? No one knew. If asked, he would have just said something true yet deliberately misleading.

"I don't think this is right."

Naruto tilted his head to the side and looked at the speaker with barely open eyes which gave his face a foxlike look. In the opinion of all three girls in the room, it made him look cute. "What do you mean, Cheerleader #3?"

The third member of the cheerleader trio, Madoka Kugimiya, flushed with anger. "What do you mean Cheerleader #3? I have a name! I am in your classes! No, wait! That's not the point! Shouldn't you be stopping this?"

"Ne, don't worry about stuff like that," Naruto said, waving her concerns aside. "Watching this stuff is way more fun than stopping it. Besides, it doesn't show on my room's TV, so I have to be here to watch it."

Plus, if he was watching, he'd be able to stop things before the girls got any ideas. The last thing he needed was another Nodoka situation. Negi had enough to deal with one confession.

It was better for everyone if he let the girls work out their frustrations in a silly game like this.

Honestly, they were way too affectionate.

"Come on, Madoka. Don't be a spoilsport," Misa pleaded.

"Yeah, you should be happy sensei isn't going to stop the game," Sakurako, her fellow cheerleader, said. "The twins were so happy when they were chosen. You wouldn't deny them their fun, would you?"

Faced with one confident smile and two sets of puppy eyes, Madoka sighed. Sometimes it didn't pay to be the serious one of the group. "Fine. Fine. Let's just watch the game, but don't blame me when we get in trouble later on."

"Oh, look! It started," Sakurako said pointing at the screen. "Have you placed any bets, sensei?"

"Nah, I can't get involved in bets with students. It isn't right for a teacher to take his student's money," Naruto said.

Sakurako was still smiling when Naruto said that, but the air around the girl changed. It was as if the level of hostility in the room had increased exponentially, like running into a level 99 monster in the first dungeon.

"Sensei seems very confident in his luck despite never having won against me," Sakurako said. The challenge in her voice was unmistakable.

Naruto just smiled. "That's funny coming from someone who never won either. Want to settle this right now? I'm game if you are... unless you are scared."

Sakurako's eyebrow twitched. It was the only sign of how she truly felt. "Sensei is very confident. I hope he won't feel bad when I win."

"Sakurako-chan, if you joke around so much, I'm not going to hold back my laughter."

Both of them chuckled as if nothing was wrong, but the sparks and oppressive auras that filled the room told another story. They told the story of an epic battle that was just around the corner.

Madoka bopped both of them on the head.

"Ow!" Both said in unison as they rubbed their heads.

"That's enough of that," she said. "There will be no betting here."

"No fair, Madoka is always spoiling the fun," Sakurako said while nursing her head.

"Yeah, a little competition never hurt anyone," Naruto said while pouting.

Madoka's twitching eye grew more violent with every passing word.

Whack!

One again Madoka's righteous knuckles made contact with two stubborn heads.

"Owwie, I am going to bruise from this," said a teary Sakurako.

"Hey, students shouldn't treat teachers this way," Naruto protested.

"Teachers also shouldn't get dragged into childish fights by students," Madoka said. She turned to Sakurako who flinched at the glare aimed at her. "Nor should students disrespect teachers by goading them into betting matches. I want to see none of that for the rest of the night!"

"Fine," both said, looking like chastised students... which was exactly what one of them was.

"Good, now let's just watch the contest and… are the twins kung fu fighting?"

"Don't know," said Misa, who hadn't bothered paying attention to the little conflict in the room. She was starting to get used to Naruto's antics. "Ku Fei did use Kung Fu earlier on. She is really good. Chisame and Yuna are out of the competition, and Incho and Makie partnered up for now."

"Actually, the twins are ninja fighting," Naruto supplied helpfully, before whistling when Yue started fighting them with books. "Nice, I had no idea she was capable of holding her own like that."

"Looks like Group Five is going to win," Misa commented as Nodoka entered Negi's room. The girl was a lot more aggressive than she thought she'd be.

"Aren't there cameras in Negi-sensei's room? I want to see what's going on," Madoka said as she got caught up in the excitement.

"And it seems like Miyazaki didn't make it. Negi-sensei's lips are still free game for all participants," Asakura's voice boomed through the TV as if answering their questions.

"Look, Incho found Negi," Sakurako cried out pointing to the screen.

"No, the twins did!"

"It is Ku Fei! No, wait, it is Yue… Makie…"

"…"

"…"

"…That's a lot of Negis," Naruto said after a moment of silence. Inwardly, he was sweating. This had all the signs of a clone technique gone wrong, and all the students were seeing it on TV.

This was bad.

"Incredible special effects!" Misa blurted out.

"…that must be it, I guess," Madoka reasoned. "There is no way Negi-sensei can be in five places at once."

She felt silly for almost having considered the notion.

"Awesome! Asakura really knows how to make things interesting!" Sakurako cheerfully said.

Naruto shot Misa a grateful look when the other two weren't looking. That had been some quick thinking on her part. It would not be hard to use the same excuse with the rest of the class. People of this world were more likely to believe in hi-tech special effects than magical clones.

More at ease now that he had a somewhat believable excuse, he leaned back against the wall and watched the girls' reactions.

Seconds later, he broke out in laughter as one by one the Negi clones exploded after being kissed. "I should probably be jealous a ten-year-old is getting more attention from girls than I am, but this is just fun."

He blinked when as soon as he said that, he found Sakurako and Misa at his sides, each girl grabbing hold of one of his arms.

"Don't say stuff like that, Naruto-sensei."

"Yeah, sensei has us," Sakurako chipped in.

Naruto blinked.

"Okay, so I'm not surprised by her doing something like this," He said, nodding in Misa's direction before looking at Sakurako, "but I thought you were still angry with me for before."

"Luck matches and sensei's hotness are two different things," Sakurako said as she leaned into his arm.

That was fair.

Sure, he could push the two girls away, but it wasn't like they meant anything serious by it. As long as it was all in good fun, Naruto didn't really mind.

Someone else did mind, though.

"What do you three think you are doing?" shouted Madoka with a blush on her cheeks.

"What does it look like?" replied Misa, greedily moving her head so she was snuggling into Naruto's toned chest. "Come on, you know you want to join in the hug."

Madoka's face went redder. "That's not the point. Teachers and students shouldn't do stuff like that. Someone may misunderstand."

"I notice you didn't deny wanting to join," Misa said with a teasing look on her face.

"That's… I mean... the game! Let's go back to watching the game," Madoka said blatantly trying to change the subject. "We need to know who the real Negi… they were all fake?"

"That's a terrible way of trying to change the sub- No way! Nodoka!"

"Did not see that one coming," admitted Naruto.

Apparently, he could protect Negi from physical harm but protecting him from puberty was a bit beyond his skills.

"Yes! I win! I knew it!" Cried out Sakurako, the only one to bet on Nodoka. Inwardly, she also cheered for her perceived victory in luck against Naruto. After all, what he had just said implied he wouldn't have bet on Nodoka.

"Damn, who knew the girl had it in her," Misa said, whistling. Her opinion of Nodoka had seriously improved within the past hours.

Sighing, Naruto untangled himself from the girls at his side with surprising ease and stood up. As it turned out, all those lessons at the Academy about the fine art of escape had plenty of practical uses.

"Well, that was fun, but I need to get going."

"Can't sensei stay for a while?" asked Sakurako, pouting.

"Sorry. Can't. Negi is going to need help," Naruto said.

"With what?"

"With that," Naruto said pointing to the screen before leaving the room.

As if on cue, Nitta-sensei appeared and captured everyone involved in the game, Negi included.

Madoka was stunned. "How did he know that was going to happen?"

Misa shrugged. "Don't bother asking. If you do, he will probably say something like-"

"Best PE Teacher in the World!" Naruto said from outside.

He laughed as the three cheerleaders yelped in surprise. Being a ninja was fun.

Leaving the cheerleaders behind, Naruto walked all the way to the main lobby where a sizable part of Class 3-A, teacher included, were sitting in a rather uncomfortable position as punishment. Standing over them like an executioner was Nitta-sensei, the dreaded Mathematics teacher.

"What happened here?" Naruto asked, even though he already knew. The students had seen him coming from behind Nitta, but in a surprising show of insight, they had decided to stay quiet, reasoning that Nitta wouldn't like it if they talked.

"Ah, it is you, Uzumaki-sensei," Nitta said when he turned to look at him. "These students and their teacher..."

Negi flinched at that.

"Were caught breaking curfew. This is their just punishment."

Naruto nodded. "Ah, that makes sense. I guess they are going to be here all night then?"

"Naturally!" Nitta said with a strong nod. "It is the only way for this lot to learn."

"Good," Naruto said, nodding. The comment drew betrayed looks from Class 3-A… until they remembered this was the man who routinely subjected them to a class that was a few steps away from torture. That took care of the betrayed looks.

They were still quite angry, though.

"I am glad you approve," Nitta-sensei said. He meant it too. Far too often he ran across young teachers who disdained his methods for not being "nice." The voice of inexperience was one he had come to find entirely too annoying.

"So who is going to be watching over them?" Naruto asked.

"That would be me, of course."

Naruto looked at Nitta for a moment before saying, "How about I do it instead? You're going to have your hands full with the kids tomorrow. No need to add a sleepless night on top of that."

Nitta mulled over Naruto's offer. "Very well, Naruto-sensei," He said. "I will leave them to you then. It is not often a youngster like you worries about an old man like me."

Naruto smiled with his eyes closed. "It's nothing. _Just go to sleep_."

Something odd happened then. Something in Naruto's voice changed. Most of the students did not notice anything. Some like Ku Fei noticed but did not understand it. Kaede Nagase, however, was staring at Naruto with her eyes fully open.

Genjutsu had never been a forte of Naruto. Time, experience, and his friendship with Kurama had given him the tools to defend himself against even the best illusionists, but actually using genjutsu was another matter entirely.

However, slightly influencing the mind of a regular human was well within his capabilities.

Naruto watched as Nitta walked out of the lobby in a daze. The old man would fall asleep as soon as he hit a bed.

"Now, what to do with the lot of you?" Naruto asked as he turned around. It was amazing how much menace he could fit into the words. The moment the words left his lips more than a few of the girls chose to hide behind their homeroom teacher.

He was almost certain Ayaka had done it just for the excuse to glomp him, though.

Still, Naruto waited, letting the silence stretch out. The girls became increasingly nervous. Beads of sweat rolled down the sides of their foreheads.

Finally, he said, "Okay, you can go now."

"What?" More than one of the girls asked.

"Don't get me wrong," Naruto said. "You broke the rules and deserve punishment, but this is a school trip. You came here to have fun. I am not gonna take that from you. So get out of here. Don't do something like this again."

The girls stared at him for a moment as what he said registered in their minds. Then something Naruto didn't expect happened.

He was glomped.

"Yay, Sensei is on our side!"

"I told you he had a nice side!"

"He is the best!"

"Hey, hold it! Naruto cried out as he was submerged in an ocean of schoolgirls, well, more like a small pond actually, but it was still a position most males would find enviable.

Predictably, the girls did not stop. Negi tried to help him out but it was of no use. In his defense, he would have been a lot more successful had Ayaka not been glomping him at the moment.

"Do you girls want me to upgrade the difficulty of the obstacle course?" Naruto asked once he had enough.

The words were barely above a whisper. However, they might as well have been shouted through a megaphone. At once, the girls leaped away from him and formed an ordered line with stances that were more fitting for soldiers standing in front of their commander.

"I need to learn how to do that," Negi muttered. It'd be nice to have his students listen to him for a change.

"Better," Naruto said after taking a deep breath, glad to have some air back in his lungs. "Now, march away. Everyone back to your rooms and don't make any more noise. You don't want to wake up Nitta."

The girls saluted as one and marched away wordlessly. Naruto nodded to himself, satisfied. He had trained them well.

"Good, now will those two hiding please come out now?" Naruto asked once the students were out of the room.

"Gah!"

Let it never be said Asuna lacked eloquence. The twin-tailed girl fell to the floor with all the elegance of a hippo trying to learn ballet.

"As you wish, sensei," Setsuna said, walking in with far more grace than Asuna had. The two girls had been doing rounds around the building when they had seen the others being punished in the lobby. Curious as to what was happening, they had hidden themselves to watch.

"How did you even know we were there?" Asuna asked once she got over the initial shock.

"I'm cool like that."

"Figures," Asuna grumbled. "Whatever. I am out of here. Goodnight, Setsuna. Let's go, Negi."

"Wait, what? Eh... Goodnight, Naruto-san, Setsuna-san."

Not bothering to stop them, Naruto just cheerfully waved goodbye to the girl as she dragged Negi upstairs.

For some reason, this made Asuna angrier.

"Oh, right," Naruto said to Setsuna after Asuna left. "I forgot to give this to you the other day."

He threw a small scroll right at her which she caught with ease.

"What is this, sensei?" Setsuna asked. She opened the scroll only to find a strange seal staring back at her. She had heard that ninja, much like certain types of magic-users, could use seals to perform certain techniques. There were supposedly some differences between the two styles, but she was no expert even if she occasionally used paper talismans.

Could Naruto-sensei be entrusting her with some type of technique prepared in the scroll?

"Oh, that's just my cell phone number. I wrote it on the back," Naruto said as he took a small orange phone out of his pocket to show it to her. "I didn't have any free paper, and those seals are just a botched experiment. They are harmless so I figured I'd use that. Give me a call if you need my help."

Setsuna sweatdropped.

xXx

After a good night of sleep, the third day of the trip arrived and with it came many troubles.

"And he started shooting lightning at me. That was so damn cool! Oh, but I didn't just stand there. No way. I was all, like, ZOOM! Couldn't dodge all the projectiles, though. There were too many of them. The stupid things burned through my shield charms. Those weren't cheap, you know? Anyway, I get past the lighting attacks, and I am right in front of him. I start hammering him real good. I was like, 'Ha! You western mages are nothing!'"

The child punctuated the statement by throwing wild punches at an imaginary opponent.

"He had a pretty strong barrier. I'll give him that. I had to hit him a bunch of times to do some real damage. Still, I was just about to land the finishing blow when he goes all, 'Activate the Contract for .5 seconds.' Suddenly, he was way faster. Like he was ki-enhanced or something. I hate to say it but that was badass. He probably looked real awesome when he punched me in the face. Bastard. Didn't know western mages could do that."

"Most people don't. Most mages aren't fighters, but when you get down to it, Ki and Magic are pretty similar so they can be used in similar ways," his listener told him.

The kid frowned and clicked his tongue. "Well, I would have liked to know that one hour ago. Oh well, spilled milk and all that. Anyway, he throws more lightning at me. A really big one this time. It freaking hurt! I mean it. That thing hurt like hell, but I wasn't out yet! I turned into my demon form. I could still fight, but then that nee-chan comes in and has that weird book, and it is like she knew everything I was going to do"

The child let himself fall to the ground. "I got my ass kicked!"

His listener nodded. "You really did. You know, you could have won if you had gone all out from the beginning. You took them way too lightly. Also, transforming after taking a spell like that was stupid. It is a wonder you're still conscious after forcing your body like that."

"Hey! I could still fight," the kid said, banging his fist against his chest and immediately wincing from the action.

A snort reached his ears.

"Please, you were so hurt that, even transformed, a normal girl was fast enough to read your next move from a book before you got the chance to do it. I saw your fight from the beginning. If you had been at full health, she wouldn't have gotten a word out before you punched Negi in the face."

"Ye-yeah, well, it is not like I could back down! Who cares if I was a little wounded! That isn't enough to stop Inugami Kotaro! It was a fight between men!" The boy said lifting his fist with conviction.

"Anyway, just who are you supposed to be anyway?" Kotaro asked after his listener only smiled in response.

"Me? I am just a passing school teacher," Naruto said.

"Bullshit!"

Naruto frowned. "You know, you could have let me keep up the 'mysterious stranger' routine I had going on. I rarely get to do it nowadays... or ever really."

"Like I care."

Thud!

"Hey, that hurt!" The boy said, holding his head.

"Like I care," Naruto echoed the kid. "Besides, I didn't ask you for a blow-by-blow of your fight. I asked what you thought of Negi."

Kotaro's frown was replaced by a wide smile as he remembered the fight. It seemed Negi had made an impression on him. "He was a little wimpy at the beginning. I mena, he had power, but power doesn't matter if you don't get a chance to use it. But man, did he step up! Good to know Western Mages can actually use their fists. That's how men should fight!"

Naruto smiled. "Yeah, he did step up. I guess I was worried for nothing."

Negi was a good kid.

"Whatever. I don't really care about that. But the important part is that you know Negi. Can you pass a message for me?"

Naruto sighed. He was so unappreciated. "Depends on the message."

"Tell him... tell him, Inugami Kotaro is going to kick his ass next time we meet," Kotaro said.

Naruto smiled. "So that type of message, eh? Sure, why not?"

Naruto had to admit this brat was starting to grow on him. He kind of reminded him of someone he knew. He couldn't pin down exactly who, though.

Maybe it was Kiba.

Oh well, he would figure it out later. Naruto got up and started to walk away. He wasn't worried about Kotaro. His wounds weren't serious and his healing factor was already patching him up.

"Hey, where are you going?" Kotaro asked. Not that he was scared of being left alone, but he could use the company. It would be boring otherwise.

"Out of here. I have a couple of things to do."

"But we are still inside the ba-"

"Kotaro," Naruto said. The word sounded like a teacher gently chiding his student. "There is no way a barrier like this one can stop me."

And with those words the man banished in front of Kotaro's eyes.

xXx

Setsuna did not have a cell phone.

The girl simply never felt the need for one. The list of people whom she ever needed to call was a very short one, and most of those people lived within walking distance of her. If she ever did need to call someone who was far away from her, then the landline in her room would be more than enough for that task.

Thus, Setsuna did not need a cell phone. That's what she honestly believed.

Until today, that is. When she realized she had no way of calling Naruto in the middle of the street.

Thankfully she had managed to find a pay phone, and luckily she had found the phone right after Naruto got out of the trap Chigusa had laid for Negi. Had she tried to call him earlier, she wouldn't have been able to reach him. Phone calls were not meant to enter very small dimensional distortions.

Had she called just a little bit earlier, Setsuna may have ended up going alone against the crazy swordswoman working for their enemies. However, Setsuna would never learn how close she came to that. Just as Naruto would never know how many coincidences lined up to allow him to take the phone call.

He simply heard the call and answered.

Life was curious that way.

"Naruto-sensei," Setsuna said before he could talk. "I am afraid I am in need of your assistance."

"The Kansai Association?" Naruto asked, not bothering with small talk.

"I am afraid so."

"Where are you?"

"Cinema Town."

"I'll be there as soon as possible," Naruto said before hanging.

Then he was off.

This wasn't like the previous times where he had disappeared without a trace. He was in a hurry. This time the stone floor beneath his feet cracked and the trees around him shook from the force generated by his movement. A loud sound reverberated through the area.

A sonic boom.

Naruto arrived in Cinema Town within seconds.

Unfortunately, the first thing he saw there was a costume shop. Naruto took a moment to glance at his rather plain clothes, an orange shirt and black pants, both in the style of the world he was in.

He glanced at the shop again.

A fierce mental debate started in his mind.

He could use Henge.

But that wouldn't feel as cool as the real thing.

Setsuna needed help, though. He couldn't afford to arrive late.

He could not have it both…

A light bulb appeared above his head.

A hand seal later a Shadow Clone was going into the store, while the real Naruto headed to find Setsuna.

Luckily, super speed meant that the whole mental debate lasted around a thousandth of a second, probably less.

A bell chimed as the Shadow Clone opened the door.

"Welcome, how may I help you?" One of the workers greeted him.

Naruto did not even look at him. His eyes were firmly fixed on one particular costume. It was on the other end of the room. It was the only one of its type in the whole shop. The costume was almost hidden by all the others surrounding it, but Naruto's eyes had recognized it for what it was.

"That one!" He shouted.

The worker took one look at what Naruto was looking at. His mouth twisted in distaste, but he hid it expertly as soon as it appeared. "Are you sure sir? This one was actually mailed to us by mistake. As you can see, it doesn't really fit with the theme of the place. You may feel out of place wearing it."

"Oh, trust me, for what I am going to do, it is perfect!

The Shadow Clone's grin threatened to split his face. The original was going to be so happy about this.

xXx

Setsuna grunted as she blocked a swing from Tsukuyomi's sword.

This was definitely not going well.

She had managed to send Konaka-ojou-sama away with Negi's shikigami, but that had left her alone to deal with the swordswoman.

Normally, that would not be a problem.

Setsuna was a humble person, so she probably had not noticed it, but she was one of the best Shinmei-ryū practitioners alive. There were probably less than two dozen members within the school that were better than her.

Setsuna grunted as her sword once again met nothing but air. Tsukuyomi's giggle was the only warning she got before a sword was thrust right at her back. It was only thanks to a quick use of Instant Movement that she was able to move out of the way and get some distance from her opponent.

Setsuna was stronger than most Shinmei-ryū practitioners alive.

Tsukuyomi was not part of that group.

With some distance between her and her opponent, Setsuna spared a glance at her classmates. Not knowing the full truth, they had gotten involved in the situation. Thankfully, Tsukuyomi was handling them through non-lethal means, but…

Their dignity was taking quite a hit as they were stripped and attacked by animated stuffed animals.

A particularly big one had taken out Ayaka, and Chizuru's eyes widened when it started advancing towards her.

"Chizuru, move!" Shouted Asakura. However, it was of no use.

In an instant, something crashed into the side of the creature like a comet and sent it flying into the nearby river.

Everyone stopped. Even Setsuna and Tsukuyomi interrupted their duel to look at the new arrival. The figure was wearing armor, but it was not like a samurai's armor or even a knight's armor. It was oddly formfitting and colored in dark green and black. A long orange scarf around the neck was the only colorful part of the ensemble. A helmet covered the face completely, and where the eyes would be, all people could see were two large, menacing red disks, almost like an insect's eyes.

In fact, the helmet as a whole was oddly reminiscent of a grasshopper.

"Are you okay?" The figure asked Chizuru.

"Naruto-sensei?" Chizuru asked, recognizing the voice.

"I have no idea who that is, but he sounds amazing," the man said. "I'm definitely not this Naruto guy. I am just a passing through…"

The people watching the scene couldn't see what happened next. All they knew was that suddenly the armored man was five meters ahead of where he had been before, and that all the stuffed animals had been cut down to pieces.

"..Ally of Justice!"

xXx

The Games Begin – End

xXx

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Fixing up the chapters of this story is always a hard task. On one hand, it's easy because it's the only thing I have to do, but it's hard because I have to face how I wrote years ago.
> 
> Anyway, the action begins here! The Kyoto Arc is going to keep going full steam ahead!
> 
> On the relationship side of things, I explore a bit of it here. In canon, Naruto jumped head-first into the relationship with Hinata the moment he realized she loved him via weird illusion memory trip, but I'm the type that prefers to write romance a bit more slowly.
> 
> Here Naruto is the Hokage so there is a no small amount of political pressure to get him to marry right away which is why he is so hesitant about starting a serious relationship. This is also part of why he doesn't mind Misa or the other girls flirting with him at all. He views the whole thing as harmless and even fun since there are no outside forces pressuring him at Mahora.
> 
> Now, some of you are going to ask this so I'm going to say that yes, Naruto could tell those people pressuring him back home to go screw themselves, but he's trying to play nice since he actually gets why that pressure exists in the first place. A shit ton of ninja died during the world and the strongest man on world having an heir to ensure his legacy will make a lot of people feel safer.
> 
> And before anyone asks, yes, Hinata will appear later on as will other Naruto characters.
> 
> Anyway, that's all for now.
> 
> Don't forget to comment!


	7. Under the Spotlight

**Hello, everyone. It's a small update this time. There is a reason for that. Details on that at the end of that chapter.**

xXx

_Report #14_

_Like the other times, there is not really much to say. Negi is a good kid and keeps out of trouble for the most part. He eats well and sleeps well and has already gotten used to his role as a teacher here. I'd say the biggest threats to him right now are the overactive students in his class. Don't get me wrong. They are good girls, and they love Negi, but they can be a bit of a handful sometimes, even when they mean well._

_Especially when they mean well._

_There will be a school trip to Kyoto next week. Naturally, I'll be there with Negi, but I don't think we'll encounter trouble._

_Signing off for now,_

_Uzumaki Naruto_

xXx

Under the Spotlight

xXx

The stage was Cinema Town.

The actors were ready. On one side of the bridge stood Sakurazaki Setsuna and a certain self-proclaimed Ally of Justice with Class 3-A behind them. On the other side of the bridge was Chigusa's hired mercenary, Tsukuyomi.

The people on both sides of the bridge watched with bated breath.  

“Hold it! I thought this place was supposed to be Edo-themed?"

 _Most of the audience_ watched with bated breath.

“It is."

“Then what the hell is something out of Tokusatsu doing here?” The man asked, pointing at the self-proclaimed Ally of Justice.

“Who cares? It is cool,” said someone else. Murmurs of agreement rose from the crowd for it was indeed an awesome suit.

"This is all very stupid."

“Yeah, I can't believe we were hired for this."

One by one, the members of the crowd turned their heads towards the source of the voices. Two dark-clad figures stood on the river below the bridge as though it was solid ground.

“See! Ninjas! Now, that’s Edo Period!"

“I don't know. They don't really look that traditional to me."

Indeed, the two men were not wearing the traditional black footie pajamas commonly associated with ninja. Instead, the two wore dark, baggy camouflage clothes. Their arms were wrapped in bandages, and their faces were hidden by respirators. However, their most distinctive feature had to be the steel-clawed gauntlets they wore. A distant second would be their slashed forehead protectors.

One Ally of Justice stared at them.

He just… stared.

Seconds of staring later, he fell over laughing.

“Oh, this is rich! The Demon Brothers? Seriously? I thought you guys retired after getting your asses kicked in the Wave?”

“Shut up! Just shut up! It is always the same thing, isn’t it?” Shouted one of the brothers, shaking his fist at him. “Oh, look! It is the Demon Brothers. They got beaten up in the Wave by a genin. Let's all laugh at them! The Copy Ninja was there too, damn it! But do they ever mention him? Nooo. It is always the genin. Well, I am sick of it. _We_ are sick of being the butt of the joke. Every. Single. Time!”

“Damn, I hate it when I don’t know the backstory,” Haruna muttered. She, like most people in the audience, still believed it was all an act.

“Brother, control yourself,” said the other ninja, placing a hand on his shoulder. His firm grip was enough to make the other rein himself.

“Forgive me, brother. I lost my temper a little.”

“That’s fine. Your words were not wrong. It is why we moved to this world, away from old prejudices. We will start over. We will be laughing stocks no longer!”

The other ninja nodded enthusiastically and aimed a finger at their foe. “Damn right! Hear that, bastard? Prepare yourself! We aren’t the same as before. We aren’t a bunch of villains put there to make the main characters look good anymore! We are the fucking stars!”

With those hot-blooded words that could have belonged to the protagonist of a shounen manga, the two ninja attacked the Ally of Justice. They moved far too fast for the eyes of the crowd to see. In an instant, sharp steel chains coming from their gauntlets were flying through the air, surrounding the grasshopper-themed hero.

They did not reach him.

The hero ducked and weaved in between the chains with peerless grace.

“Naïve,” muttered one of the brothers.

The Ally of Justice almost yelped when, as if they had a will of their own, the chains suddenly switched directions in pursuit of him. As he kept on dodging them, he noticed the almost imperceptible chakra strings tied to the chains. A short glance to his side confirmed that the strings were coming from one of his enemies.

_So that’s how they are controlling the chains…not bad._

The chains moved to close around the hero, but…

He grabbed them.

His armored hand easily snatched one of the chains out of the air.

“DYNAMIC!”

With a mighty pull, the Ally of Justice yanked the chains towards him. His strength was far too much for the missing-nin on the other end. His body sailed through the air towards the hero.

“PUNCH!”

And right into his fist.

The poor ninja was sent crashing through a wall and then another and another, only to fall to the ground unconscious at the end.

“Damn it!” shouted the remaining brother. “Using stupid attacks like that… are you looking down on us, fucker?”

His hands blurred through a sequence of hand seals the Ally of Justice was more than familiar with.

Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu

Forty-four hand seals.

The missing-nin blazed through them in a fraction of a second.

“I told you! We ain’t some damn side-characters!!!”

The water dragon rose from the river as if awakening from a long slumber. Its pupilless eyes found the Ally of Justice.

It lunged.

xXx

A cute frown made its way to Tsukuyomi's face as she heard the audience cheer.

"Senpai," she said, as she locked swords with Setsuna. "They are hogging the spotlight."

"A true warrior has no need for fame," replied Setsuna as she pushed Tsukuyomi back with a burst of Ki-enhanced strength. "You would know that if you followed the true path of the Gods' Cry School instead of reducing yourself to a mere mercenary."

"Ah, being scolded by Senpai feels nice," Tsukuyomi said. She was blushing even as she suddenly thrust her sword in a move that would most certainly have crippled Setsuna had she not dodged in time. "However, I still think we need to add an appeal factor to our fight. Maybe I should act the part of a scorned lover?"

Setsuna did not dignify that with an answer.

However, her sword did become quite a bit more vicious.

xXx

“Damn, that’s some awesome CGI!” one of the spectators shouted.

The excitement in his voice was echoed by others as they watched the Ally of Justice jump away from the massive water dragon's attacks.

Asakura Kazumi, one of the few among the audience who knew the truth, could not help but echo the excitement although for entirely different reasons.

This was magic!

It really wasn’t but she did not know it, and if she did, she wouldn’t care. The high-speed fight earlier had been cool, but THIS! This was something else! The water dragon moved as if it was alive. It even roared!

This was the type of story a reporter would die for!

Already the girl had taken out her camera. Picture after picture was taken. Her finger was pretty much blurring by this point. Sure, everyone was convinced it was just an act, and she had no way to prove otherwise, but damn if that Water Dragon wasn’t front page material.

Click!

Naruto-sensei (Because it was obvious it was him in that suit. The PE teacher hadn’t even bothered to disguise his voice) jumped high into the air to avoid the dragon’s charge.

Click!

Naruto… double jumped…. Asakura had no other way of describing what she saw through the lens. Somehow his airborne body gained a new momentum, and Naruto was suddenly headed right towards the dragon, legs-first.

A dropkick from at least two hundred feet above the ground.

Click!

Asakura mentally thanked whoever had invented the Zoom function. Something… Asakura was not sure what, seemed to be swirling around Naruto’s legs. It was almost like a miniature tornado around him.

Click!

The dragon roared.

Ninja and dragon met in the sky.

Click!

There was no shockwave. There was no loud explosion or pained cries, just the sound of water falling to the ground as Naruto’s body literally _drilled_ through the dragon, tearing it apart from head to tail.

The tornado around him faded, but his course stayed true.

Right towards the last demon brother.

Click!

“DYNAMIC!”

Had the ninja not been gaping like an idiot after seeing his best attack defeated like that, he would have been able to dodge. Alas, that wasn’t the case.

“KICK!”

The kick connected, sending the ninja flying to the bottom of the river. It took several seconds for his unconscious form to resurface.

“That. Was. Awesome!” Haruna shouted, a shout which was soon followed by cheers from the crowd.

It was, Asakura decided. It really, really was.

She was so glad she was part of this class.

At this rate, getting a Pulitzer before graduation was not a pipe dream.

xXx

“Thank you! Thank you! We’ll be here all week! Please be sure to come back!” Naruto said, welcoming the audience's praise with open arms.

The Demon Brothers were left forgotten.

Such is the fate of losers in Cinema Town.

“Sensei!” Setsuna interrupted. “This is no time for that! Ojou-sama is still-“

Setsuna grunted as a particularly nasty slice from Tsukuyomi came a hair's breadth away from her skin.

“-in danger,” she finished.

Naruto blinked. Right. Kyoto. Magic Powers. Ancient Rituals.

He hadn’t forgotten about it.

The ninja quickly shut his eyes and concentrated. Ki and Magic were easier to sense than chakra, but it was not something he had ever really bothered with. After all, he came from a world where the use of both was pretty much non-existent. Plus, he was not in Sage Mode at the moment which meant he did not have access to that form's enhanced sensing skills.

However, that didn’t mean he had no way of finding Konoka.

He could still feel emotions after all.

At a glance, the ability wasn’t all that useful for finding someone in a sea of people. One emotion was like the other. He could feel joy, but he couldn’t differentiate between the joys of different people. Emotions were not like chakra. When in Sage Mode he could pinpoint each and every individual chakra signature over a radius best measured in several miles. However, it was incredibly hard to find a specific person just by sensing their emotions.

But it wasn’t impossible.

He just needed to know which type of emotions he was looking for. For example, the people in Cinema Town were looking to have fun. There were emotions that likely wouldn’t be found in them. For example, fear. The fear of someone being chased. Desperation. Anxiety.  There were also the negative feelings coming from the persecutors to consider.

Unique emotions that wouldn’t usually be found in the hearts of the people having fun in a theme park.

Naruto's eyes snapped open. He had found them.

His gaze went to a building about a hundred yards away. Negi (or rather a shikigami controlled by Negi) and Konoka were on the rooftop. In front of them was the woman who had attacked the other day. A summoned demon of some sort was at her side and aiming an arrow at the two.

A strong gust of wind ran through the theme park.

Negi placed himself in front of Konoka to protect her.

The arrow was let loose.

Naruto _moved._

The arrow snapped in half in his hands.

A heartbeat later, Setsuna was behind him, killing intent radiating from her body, all of it directed at the woman and her summoned demon. It was only a strong sense of duty towards Konoka that kept her from abandoning her position as a bodyguard and cutting both of them in half.

Naruto wasn't exactly feeling all that happy at the moment either.

“This won’t do,” he said, looking the crushed arrow in his hand. His tone was light, yet something in those words made the enemy duo shiver.

“I mean, you have to know the only reason why the Kansai Association hasn’t come down on you is because you haven’t hurt anyone so far,” Naruto said, looking into Chigusa's eyes.

“I-T-that’s-”

Chigusa wanted to say she hadn't ordered her demon to shoot. It had just gotten a bit trigger happy. However, she found herself unable to form a sentence.

“Don't,” Naruto said. His words had lost all their warmth. “This is the last time you use lethal force. You won’t kill anyone. You won't hurt anyone. Try doing something like this again, and I won't overlook how you tried to use my ninja.”

Had Chigusa realized the full implications of that statement, she would have paled further. As it was, she was too intimidated to fully process that statement.

Luckily for her, one of her underlings was far more competent, intelligent, and powerful than her.

“Given the circumstances, I propose a retreat,” whispered Fate as he appeared at her side. Without even waiting for an answer, he grabbed Chigusa and teleported away with a pre-made talisman.

Long range dimensional displacement talismans were one of the greatest things ever in Fate’s opinion.

Next to coffee, of course.

While Fate and Chigusa managed to escape the scene, they left someone behind.

A lone demon with a bow.

He didn't last long.

xXx

The bad guys had been driven away, and Konoka had been saved. All in all, it had been a good result for our heroes.

However, Negi had seen everything his shikigami had. He may not have seen Naruto fight the Demon Brothers, but he had seen Naruto appear out of nowhere to snatch an arrow out of the air and talk about things normal people shouldn’t know. That's why when Naruto, Setsuna, and Konoka met up with them, Negi had more than a few questions to ask.

Unfortunately, the trio had also brought half the class with them which meant he couldn't ask any sensitive information.

"We couldn't lose them," an apologetic Setsuna had said. The class had apparently swarmed them in Cinema Town and hadn't let them out of their sights. Negi questioned the wisdom of letting the class follow them to the headquarters of the Kansai Magic Association, but it was too late to tell them to turn back. The sooner he delivered the letter, the sooner everything would be fixed.

For now, he just needed to be patient.

“Hmph, I knew there was something weird about you,” Asuna said, crossing her arms. Unlike Negi, she had neither the desire nor the inclination to be patient.

“Weird? Me? I don't know. If you compare me to the rest of the class, I think I fit in just fine, right guys?" Naruto asked the ten-year-old genius mage and the supernatural swordswoman/bodyguard beside him.

Konoka hid a giggle. "When sensei puts it like that, I guess he does fit right in."

"Konoka!" Asuna said, betrayed.

"You know, you are taking all of this awfully well," Naruto said, casting his gaze in Konoka's direction. Less than an hour ago, the girl had not known about the supernatural. Now, she had been chased by a demon and its summoner and saved by her teachers and classmates who also happened to be related to the supernatural.

"Well, it was really shocking at first," Konoka admitted, nodding. "But I also think the way you were all fighting to save me was very cool!"

"Ojou-sama," Setsuna muttered, touched by Konoka's words. Negi and Asuna also sported heartfelt smiles.

"Oh, right," Setsuna said as another thought forced its way to the forefront of her mind. "Negi-sensei. Asuna-san. I must apologize. I knew of Naruto-sensei's abilities, but it was not my secret to tell.”

Negi smiled at her. “It is alright, Setsuna-san. I understand.”

Asakura, who had been not-so-subtly moving closer to them, chose that moment to speak up. “Hey, what's up with this neat 'everything is forgiven' scene? Come on, Negi-sensei. There is such a thing as being too well-behaved. Don’t tell me you aren’t the least bit interested in who Naruto-sensei really is? He cut a giant water dragon in half, you know? You have to be at least a little curious. You totally want to know too, right?”

Negi shuffled a bit, embarrassed. “I...that is… well…”

“Thought so," Asakura said with a triumphant smile before looking at Naruto. "So what are you, Naruto-sensei? A mage like Negi? A supernatural martial artist like Setsuna?  A superhero who looks suspiciously similar to a certain cultural icon? Come on, the people need to know!”

Naruto looked at the other girls up ahead who were distracted by the scenery around them before speaking. “I guess there is no sense in keeping it a secret anymore. I'm a ninja.”

“What type of ninja dresses as a superhero?” Asuna grumbled. She had received an extensive summary of what happened in Cinema Town from Asakura and Haruna.

“The best,” Naruto replied without missing a beat. “Anyway, I was hired to protect Negi while he was in Japan. That's why I started working in Mahora.”

“Was it the principal who hired you?" Negi asked.

Naruto wagged his finger. “Can't tell you. Client confidentiality and all that. No one would hire us if we just went around telling everyone who we work for.”

Negi frowned but accepted the answer. If he devoted enough time to piecing all the clues together, he could probably figure out who had hired Naruto by himself. After all, there were only a handful of people that knew of his trip to Japan. Of those, the number who had the resources to hire a bodyguard for him was even smaller.

Asakura, however, was not done asking questions. “So how exactly does one hire a ninja? Are you lone mercenaries or is there some big ninja organization out there?”

“Eh, it varies. Guys like the Demon Brothers are freelancers. I work for an organization. It's a bit more complicated than that but nevermind. We are here,” Naruto said, pointing to the gates of the Headquarters of the Kansai Magic Association.

Negi and Asuna tensed up. It was a natural reaction. After all, they were right in front of the enemy’s stronghold. However, that tension soon fled their bodies like autumn leaves carried by the wind when they were greeted by dozens of servants, or rather when Konoka was greeted by dozens of **her** servants.

“Oh, the Headmaster didn’t tell you? Konoka is the daughter of the Kansai Association's chief,” Naruto explained. Not that he had been told either. Naruto knew because, well, ninja.

Neither Negi nor Asuna replied. They just stared slack-jawed at the scene.

xXx

One long explanation and a successful letter delivery later, Naruto and Negi were relaxing in the large baths of the Konoe mansion along with Eishun Konoe, Konoka’s father and chief of the Kansai Magic Association.

“Man, this place sure is nice,” Naruto said, relaxing in the water. The place was even bigger than the hotel's hot springs.

Eishun chuckled. “I am glad to hear that. You are welcome to stay as much as you want to. Consider it a compensation for all the trouble we have caused you.”

“Konoe-san wasn’t the one at fault,” Negi protested. "The monkey woman was the one who kept attacking us."

“Chigusa is one of my underlings,” Eishun replied, shaking his head. “As chief, I must bear responsibility for the actions committed by those under me.”

_“Wouldn’t you agree, Hokage-san?”_

Naruto raised an eyebrow. A two-way telepathic link just like that? Magic sure was useful. That said, it was probably a good thing Kurama was sleeping at the moment.

_“Did the old man tell you? Eh, nevermind. It's not like I was going to keep it a secret from the Kansai Association. I would appreciate it if you don't tell Negi though. I want to be just a normal ninja while I stay at Mahora.”_

_“Of course, I understand the need to get away from things once in a while. Being a leader can be stressful.”_

_“Thanks.”_

With that, Naruto cut the link between himself and Eishun, ending the conversation. It was a good thing telepathy allowed people to have conversations at the speed of thought. It meant that for all they had talked, only enough time for Negi to open his mouth had passed.

“I am not sure I understand that. I do not want to blame Konoe-san,” Negi said. The older man was nice as far as Negi could tell. Plus, he was a friend of his father. That meant there was no way he was a bad guy.

“I certainly appreciate the sentiment, Negi-kun,” Eishun said with a smile.

“Don’t worry, Negi. You’ll understand when you are forced to take responsibility for whatever trouble those girls cause,” Naruto teased, knowing it was only a matter of time before that happened. Whether it was a prank of the Narutaki twins, one of Hakase's inventions, or some other shenanigan, it was certain Negi would end up blamed for it.

Negi nodded, still not quite sure he agreed. Fate had plans for him though, and in a few weeks, he would find words similar to Eishun’s coming from his own mouth. However, that was still far away, and there were quite a few hurdles he had to go through first.

For now, Negi was content to relax in the water.

“There is still something I don’t understand, Naruto-san,” Negi said after a moment of silence.

“I thought I told you to drop the honorifics," Naruto noted. "But fine, ask away.”

“I understand that you were hired to protect me, but why did you decide to stay hidden?”

Naruto blinked.

“Oh, that. Well, I would be lying if I said staying hidden wasn’t cool and all, but that’s not really it. Being an outsider gave me greater freedom to act. I could watch over you without getting too involved in your daily activities.” Naruto frowned. “Now that you know about me, I am going to get dragged into your comedy sketches. My cool aura of mystery is gone.” 

“...I don't get it."

Eishun laughed. “I guess that’s a ninja for you. You do like keeping secrets.”

“I wouldn’t know about that. I keep getting told I am way too transparent to be a ninja,” Naruto said, sheepishly scratching the back of his neck.

Negi wanted to say something but stopped when distinctively female voices reached his ears. It seemed like the girls had the same idea and were heading to the bath. At once, Negi and Eishun stood up, muttering to themselves that it would be bad if they were caught.

“Wait, shouldn’t we just let them know we are here so that they don’t enter?” That's what Naruto wanted to say, but Negi and Eishun were already out of the pool.

Naruto wasn’t quite sure what happened next.

Asuna and Setsuna, who had apparently been there all along, chose that moment to make their presence known to the surprise of all the males. Nevermind the fact that Naruto was a highly trained ninja, and Eishun was the head of a magical organization. Therefore, they should have noticed them from the start.

Then there was a crash. Naruto wasn’t sure how. What he did know was that there was suddenly a mess of tangled bodies in the pool which somehow included him.

Then the girls opened the doors, and there were plenty of shouts, accusations, blushes, and demands for explanations.

“See?" Naruto told Negi, somehow managing to twist his body to face the child teacher. "This is what happens when a person loses his mysterious aura. They become part of the joke.”

Whatever Negi’s answer may have been, it was muffled by flesh, Asuna’s flesh to be precise. To be even more precise, it was her breast. The vibrations caused by Negi trying to speak had an unexpected effect.

Asuna moaned.

Many people blushed.

Asakura and Haruna sported shark-like grins. 

Asuna's body temperature spiked to the point where the water around her was starting to boil. Had the males been capable of moving, they would have started backing away very quickly and very carefully. Alas, they couldn’t, and a second later, Negi was sporting a bump on his head.

Naruto sighed. “Oh, screw this.”

With those words, Naruto vanished in a swirl of leaves in front of everyone.

A moment of silence descended upon the room.                                                                                                            

Haruna turned to Asakura. “Okay, that was definitely not CGI.”

Asakura just laughed nervously. Not that she really cared if magic got exposed, but she had promised Negi to help him. Well, that and they were in the headquarters of a Magic Association.

She did not want to get her memories messed with,

Surprisingly for everyone, the one who spoke next was Yue. “That was obviously one of the many great skills high-class PE teachers are able to use.”

As everyone in the baths turned to stare at her, they noticed that she was reading from a letter, a letter that had been left by Naruto before leaving the room.

“Doesn’t he get tired of that explanation?” Asuna complained.

“PS: Nope,” read Yue.

“Figures.”

xXx

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Demon Brothers return.
> 
> And vanish.
> 
> Anyway, on the reason for this chapter's length. Originally, this chapter was around 15,000 words. That seemed like a bit too much, and it had already been some time since the last update. Going over the whole thing would have taken even more days, so I decided to cut the chapter in two parts. 
> 
> On the plus side, that means the next update should be up sooner rather than later. 
> 
> Until next time everyone. Don't forget to comment.


	8. Moonlight Scramble

xXx

Moonlight Scramble

xXx

Negi flew through the night's sky. The full moon shined brightly above him. White-knuckled fists were wrapped tight around his staff as he poured more and more magic into it. Tension was plain to see on his face.

How had things gone so wrong?

After the mess in the baths, Konoka's father had told them they were free to stay in the mansion for the night. The girls had readily agreed, and since it was already late, Negi had allowed it. Besides, there were plenty of things Negi wanted to discuss with Eishun-san. While some people in the village had known his father as a child, he had never met anyone who had actually traveled with him.

Well, there was Evangeline, but she was the opposite of approachable.

After the girls retreated to their rooms, Negi had gone to check on them one last time. As their teacher, it was the responsible thing to do. It would be bad if they stayed up all night talking and were unable to get up early the next day.

That was when he found his students petrified.

His shock only grew when he found Konoka's father, the Chief of the Kansai Magic Association, under the same petrification spell. By the time Asuna told him Konoka had been kidnapped, he was already numb. He had seen the girls laughing and cheering only minutes ago yet now they were petrified. The enemy had even kidnapped Konoka whom they had tried so hard to protect. Everything had gone wrong so unimaginably fast Negi barely had enough presence of mind left to call the headmaster and inform him of what had happened.

However, the headmaster was too far away to do anything, and Negi hadn't seen Naruto since he had left the baths. Right now, the only ones who could save Konoka were Asuna, Setsuna, and him, and that was exactly what they set out to do.

Unfortunately, Chigusa had used Konoka's power to summon an army of demons to block their path.

The sight brought many unwelcome memories. The entire night had done nothing but bring unwelcome memories. Petrification. Demons. It was just like that night so many years ago. Anger was not an emotion Negi allowed himself to feel all that often for he had far too much self-control for that. However, this night was testing that control. The images from that snowy night kept flashing through his mind again and again, and those images made Negi want to punch the person responsible for all of this very badly.

He was so desperate to find the one responsible that when Chamo had suggested a plan that would allow him to face the enemy sooner, he had agreed readily. The fact that it involved forming yet another Pactio with one of his students was just a minor inconvenience. He had used one of his strongest spells to cut a path through the demons and left his students behind. It pained him that he had to leave Asuna and Setsuna fighting the demons while he chased after Chigusa.

However, he was not going to let that night repeat itself. It was that simple.

A pillar of light rose in the sky, cutting his reminiscence short. He didn't have much time left. With a burst of magic that would have torn a lesser artifact apart, Negi's staff accelerated. The forest faded away to reveal a large lake. The wooden dock stretched into a pathway that led all the way to the very center of the lake.

That was where they were.

Chigusa, the woman that had been hounding them since they arrived in Kyoto and…

The white-haired boy.

The one who had petrified Konoka's father.

_The one who had petrified his students!_

Negi flew at him like a missile.

He saw the boy raise a talisman. Less than a second later, a summoned demon was coming at him. With a few whispered words, magic began flowing through Negi's body. The demon flew towards the child teacher at breakneck speeds. Its sharp claws were inches away from reaching his face.

Negi punched right through it, dispelling it instantly.

An incantation later, a wind spell hit the water creating a large splash and covering the area in mist.

Behind Fate, Chigusa started to panic. The pale boy chose to ignore her in favor of keeping his eyes on the mist. Something started to come out. Reflexively, Fate lifted a hand, his spell ready to launch.

A single, _empty_ staff shot out from the mist.

Something moved behind Fate. Using magic to boost his speed to heights no normal human could possibly reach, Negi had managed to get behind Fate using the single moment of distraction provided by his staff. His fist was clenched tight and heading towards Fate's body. At that moment, the speed of Negi's fist was within spitting distance of the sound barrier.

To Fate, Negi might as well have been moving in slow motion.

He could have dodged the blow. He could have killed Negi over five hundred times in the time it took for the boy's fist to reach him. However, Fate didn't bother doing so.

Because the boy's actions were meaningless.

Negi's determined face exploded into shock when his fist slammed against Fate's barrier spell. The ermine resting on Negi's shoulders began sweating bullets.

"How boring," Fate stated. Faster than Negi could react to, Fate grabbed his wrist. At that moment, he could have easily broken Negi's arm. However, there was no point in it. The child was simply not a threat to him.

What a shame.

He had expected better from the son of the Thousand Master, but he was just a child after all. Fate readied a petrification spell when a peculiar sound reached his ears.

Laughter.

The child and his pet were laughing.

"Did we fool you?"

That was the only warning he got before light bloomed between them. Had he not been surprised, he would have been able to get away in time. As it was, arrows of light wrapped themselves around Fate, immobilizing his body.

"Ha! How do you like that? At this distance, your barriers only offer minimal protection! You are trapped now!" the ermine gloated.

"I see. A delayed spell cast within the mist. Impressive for one with so little battle experience," Fate noted. He could easily free himself if he tried, but a part of him wanted to see how Negi Springfield would act next.

At this point, the smart decision would have been for Negi to go for Chigusa and rescue Konoka. Fate would not be bound by the spell forever, and Negi needed to make every second count. However...

"Hey," Negi said, surprising Chamo. "Were you the one who petrified my students?"

It was a question with an answer he already knew. However, it was an answer he needed to hear.

"Is that a question you should be asking right now?" Fate asked. He tilted his head to the side in a strangely mechanical manner, before something like comprehension flashed across his face. "Ah, I do recall hearing about what happened to your hometown. This must-"

What happened next couldn't be called a spell.

The process of casting a spell could be broadly divided into two parts. The first part consisted of nothing but gathering the necessary magical power for the spell. This was not particularly different from techniques that relied on other types of energy.

It was during the second part where things got tricky. What separated Magic from other disciplines was a mage's ability to communicate and command spirits. There were spirits of darkness, of light, of wind, of time, and many, many more. It was through the manipulation of spirits that a mage could shape his or her spell. Spirits were the reason why magic was much more versatile when compared to energies like Ki and chakra.

Different mages had different ways of commanding spirits. For a western mage like Negi, using incantations to properly guide the spirits was the norm. Experienced mages could forgo the incantations altogether. As someone who was still in training, Negi still found himself needing to use incantations.

This time he didn't.

Not because he was confident in his skill and control. He just didn't summon any spirits at all. Negi simply gathered magic in his fist without any spirits to shape it into lightning or wind. It was just raw energy waiting to be unleashed.

He unleashed it on Fate's face.

The sound of his fist hitting the pale boy's face resounded through the area. At such a close distance, Fate's barriers offered little protection against that much power. However, Fate did not fall. He received all of Negi's power head on. His head was thrown back a bit, but that was all the attack did to him.

"Impressive," the boy said, and Negi could tell he was being honest. "You really are impressive, Negi Springfield."

Faster than Negi could react, Fate tore through the magical bindings holding him in place. It was only that moment of action that gave Negi enough time to raise his arms and cross them in front of him to defend himself. The blow came a fraction of a second later. A speeding truck would have been gentler than Fate's blow. Negi's body was sent flying away like a stone skipping over the water.

His body was still flying when a loud roar filled the area. Chigusa's triumphant laughter reached his ears, and Negi knew it was already too late. The demon sealed beneath the lake had been released.

He had failed.

_Sorry… everyone…_

"Seems like I am a bit a late."

Negi blinked when he heard those words. Then he blinked twice more when a pair of strong arms caught him. Negi looked up to see his rescuer. A pair of blue eyes looked down at him.

"Would you believe I got lost on the road of life?"

xXx

A mile away from Negi, another battle was taking place. While their teacher went ahead to deal with Chigusa and rescue Konoka, Asuna and Setsuna stayed behind to stall the huge army of summoned demons.

The battle was not going well.

Though the arrival of Mana and Ku Fei had been of great help, things were still far from easy. Setsuna had her hands full dealing with Tsukuyomi. Ku Fei and Asuna were both fairly strong, but they still had a hard time dealing with the higher level demons. Mana could deal with them but their sheer number made things more than a little troublesome.

Plus, she didn't want to waste too many bullets.

Regardless, the end result was the same. The four girls were slowly being pushed back by an army of demons. It was a testament to the magical power resting inside Konoka that a relatively minor talent like Chigusa had been able to summon this many.

However, when things seemed to be at their worst, a bright light engulfed everything.

The huge pillar of light in the distance exploded as Chigusa successfully freed the demonic god from its containment. Even though it was happening a mile away from them, the sheer brightness managed to stop the battle for a second as everyone shielded their eyes.

When the light faded, they were surrounded.

No one but Mana had noticed the new arrivals moving closer to them, hiding in the shadows, waiting for their chance. Had Misa been there, she would have been able to recognize the new arrivals as the ninja she had seen the day before.

No one moved. No one spoke. Both sides stared warily at the newcomers.

Three heartbeats later a female voice broke the silence.

"In a gesture of goodwill and friendship towards the Kansai Magic Association and due to the attempts of one Amagasaki Chigusa to drag us into her petty feud, our Ninja Alliance has decided to lend its aid to the Kansai Magic Association for the purposes of rescuing the daughter of Eishun Konoe."

The entire speech was delivered in a monotone, bored tone of voice.

"What?"

Unsurprisingly, it was Asuna who asked the obvious question, though Ku Fei looked fairly confused as well.

"In other words," Ino said as she stepped out of the shadows, taking her place in front of the gathered ninja. "Because your mistress tried to use us, we are now going to kick your demonic asses all the way back to whichever land you were summoned from."

"Well, that's a laugh," one of the demons said. "This is the first time I have heard ninja complaining about being used. You guys are supposed to be tool-"

The demon stopped talking. His body went oddly stiff for a moment. When he started to speak again, his tone and mannerisms were completely different. "Of course, that's all ancient talk. It has been years since we shed away those old-fashioned ideas."

The demon paused again. He held up his arms in front of him and carefully glanced at the rest of his body. "Not bad. This body will do."

"Aru?" Ku Fei said.

"What just happened?" Asuna asked, still wary about the new arrivals.

"Possession," Mana replied before turning to Ino. "That makes you a Yamanaka then."

"Oh, you are pretty well informed," Ino said, using her real body. "Please, do not be afraid to leave this battle in our hands. You girls can go and help that sensei of yours."

"Isn't that a bit too cocky, ninja?" one of the demons asked. "Sorry, but we ain't gonna let those girls pas-Ugh!"

Ino smiled as the demon she had possessed sent him flying away with a punch. "Sorry, but we had no intention of asking your opinion. Everyone, get them!"

The ninja fell down on their prey, and the battle began once again.

xXx

"Naruto-san," Negi breathed out.

Then he yelped when Naruto bopped him on the head.

"I told you to stop using honorifics with me."

Naruto had managed to grab Negi while the latter was flying through the air. Much to Negi's surprise, the ninja was standing on top of the water and showing no signs of sinking.

"But we'll talk about that later," Naruto said, sparing a moment to glance at the huge monster summoned by Chigusa. It had four arms, two faces, and literally glowed with power. As for the woman controlling the monster, she just laughed madly from her place on top of the beast. Her first taste of real power had gone to her head.

"Here's the plan. I take care of the giant monster and Konoka. You deal with the creepy kid. Your partners should be arriving here soon. Have them back you up."

Negi opened his mouth to protest. He couldn't let Naruto-san take on such a dangerous thing by himself. "But that's-"

Naruto cut him off. "That's the only option right now. Besides, I outrank you. I am an awesome ninja PE teacher, and you're just a mere middle-school English teacher. Got it?"

For some reason, those words were a lot more convincing than they should be, and Negi found himself nodding.

"Good, now are you going to have any trouble getting your staff back? I heard you mages are more effective with focus items."

Negi's answer was a whispered command. At once, the staff lying at Fate's side flew towards Negi like a bullet, coming to a sudden stop once it reached him. During that moment, Fate could have grabbed the staff and snapped it in half had he wanted to. It was certainly not beyond his speed to do so.

He didn't.

Instead, his eyes were focused on the new arrival. Memories from less than an hour ago flashed through his mind.

xXx

It had happened when he attacked the mansion. Fate had just finished petrifying the girls when he felt a strong killing intent aimed right at him.

"Petrification, huh? That's some pretty rare magic you got there."

Fate turned around in the blink of an eye, a spell ready in his hands.

However, there was no one there.

"Easy there, I am just here to talk. I am not even really here. No idea where the original is to be honest."

Fate turned around again, and this time he found a blond person with blue eyes looking at him.

"Now see, depending on how you answer my question this may get ugly. The petrification spell you just used, it is the permanent kind? I will get really angry if it is. Really, really angry. I thought I told that woman to not endanger innocent lives."

In spite of his seemingly light words, the killing intent in the room grew thicker the longer he spoke. It was a testament to Fate's willpower that he was able to maintain eye-contact with Naruto. Lesser men than Fate would have fainted from sheer terror a long time ago.

"The spell is reversible," Fate answered. "I have no taste for meaningless murder."

Just like that, the killing intent vanished from the room and Naruto was all smiles. "Good."

"You believe me so easily?" Fate asked, his opinion of the blond diminishing a little

"I like to think I have a good eye for people. I can barely feel your emotions, but what I can feel tells me you aren't much of a bad guy."

After saying that, the shadow clone vanished in a puff of smoke.

xXx

The blond was trouble. Fate knew that. At the same time, there was no reason for him to concern himself with that enemy.

As far as Fate was concerned, whatever obligation he had to Chigusa had already ended. She had achieved her goal. Whether she managed to succeed from here on was up to her. He had also finished assessing the son of the Thousand Master. He had seen the boy's combat abilities and raw power. While it was certainly impressive for a ten-year-old, it was nothing he needed to concern himself with. He could easily leave the battlefield if he wished to.

Almost unconsciously Fate's hand drifted to his cheek.

The boy had punched him in the face. He was the first person to have done so.

Fate cracked his knuckles. Perhaps, further assessing was necessary.

xXx

As Fate advanced towards him, sweat dripped from Negi's brow. He had already used way too much magic and gotten nothing for his efforts. If he fought Fate as he was now, he would only succeed in losing faster than before.

Luckily for him, Chamo chose that moment to speak up. "Aniki! What are you waiting for? Summon the girls!"

"Right!" Negi said as he remembered pactio cards had that particular function. The child teacher took out the two pactio cards in his possession and used telepathy to let the girls know he was about to summon them. Once he did, he raised the cards into the air and shouted the spell. Two magic circles appeared around him, and with a burst of light, Setsuna and Asuna appeared on them.

"What the hell is that supposed to be?" Asuna shouted as she saw the massive beast Chigusa had freed.

"That would be my opponent," Naruto's voice boomed through the area. Though the girls did not know it, he was using ninjutsu to increase the volume of his voice. It would not do if his opponent couldn't hear him.

"You?" Chigusa shouted from her position atop of the demon's head. Her voice was heavy with mockery. Whatever fear Naruto had instilled on her earlier had vanished in the presence of her newly acquired power. "What can you do? Nothing! You are no match for this demonic god!"

"We'll just have to see about that, won't we... eh," Naruto trailed off, scratching his head. "You know I just realized I don't even know your name. I am not trying to kill the mood or anything, but did you happen to mention your name before? Because I am going to feel really embarrassed if I just forgot about it."

Chigusa whose face had gotten increasingly purple only had one thing to say:

"Smash him!"

A giant fist descended upon Naruto. The ninja just stared unflinchingly at the fist that was larger than his entire body. Once the fist was within range, Naruto just...

Kicked.

He kicked the side of the humongous fist. By all means, his much smaller body shouldn't have been able to handle all that momentum, yet it was the giant fist that veered off-course due to the clash, missing Naruto's body and hitting the water instead.

Silence fell on the battlefield.

"You know," Naruto said conversationally as he advanced towards the giant. "I am pretty sure you also don't know my name. That's fine with me since I'm trying to keep a low profile, but I do want you to understand one thing."

Naruto cracked his knuckles.

"I am actually pretty strong."

xXx

Three people looked at the battle with awe.

"So strong," Negi breathed out. Asuna and Chamo stood next to him with wide eyes.

"That's not it," Setsuna said. "He is strong certainly, but that wasn't just physical strength."

She had seen it. What Naruto had done had escaped the eyes of Negi, Asuna, and Chamo but not hers.

200 times.

Faster than anyone else on the battlefield could see, Naruto had kicked the beast two hundred times on the same spot. The combined strength of all those blows had been what moved the demon's fist. Other than Setsuna, the others had only seen one kick.

Well, that wasn't exactly true.

One other person had seen everything and with much greater ease. It was the same person that was now about to launch a wide area petrification spell at the shocked spectators.

Only instinct born from years of fighting alerted Setsuna of the danger.

"Sensei! We have to get out of here!" Without even giving an explanation, Setsuna grabbed Negi and Asuna and dragged them out of the way using Instant Movement. It was a good thing she did. The spell hit the area a second later, turning the wooden dock into rock. The sudden change in weight was enough for the structure to collapse, sinking into the lake and sending water splashing everywhere.

Asuna coughed as she recovered from the sudden movement. "What was that?"

"Petrification spell," Setsuna replied. "A different variant from the one he used earlier. It seems that is his specialty."

The swordswoman turned to Negi who was clutching his side. "Are you okay, sensei?"

Negi forced a smile. "It is alright. Thanks to Setsuna-san, we managed to get away in time."

Setsuna frowned but didn't say anything else. It wasn't the time to push the issue. However, she could also tell Negi-sensei was not in any condition to fight. The child's breathing was heavy. He had exerted himself too much for one day.

Unfortunately, Setsuna was going to need him to push himself a little further. Her earlier scuffle with the white-haired boy in the Konoe mansion had taught her he was an opponent she could not defeat on her own.

"Negi-sensei, I need you to back me up with long range spells. Kagurazaka, stay behind to protect sensei in case the white-haired boy gets past me," Setsuna ordered the two.

Whatever the two may have been about to say was stopped as they were distracted by the sound coming from the wreckage.

Step.

Step.

Step.

Slowly, as if he had all the time in the world, Fate walked towards them. The three felt a shiver run down their spines as his eyes found them. Power cloaked every inch of his body.

In that instant, Setsuna knew holding back was not an option.

"Sensei, Asuna," she said, drawing their attention. "It seems I have no choice no left. I truly did not mean to deceive you or Ojou-sama... so please do not hate me."

Setsuna closed her eyes as she allowed her body to return to its natural shape. It had been years since the last time she had done so. She had no desire to be in that wretched form, but at the same time, she couldn't deny how comfortable it felt to let go, to stop hiding and pretending.

It wasn't a complete reversal. Her hair did not return to its natural color. Her contacts stayed in place. However, her wings ripped the back of her shirt as they grew, and that felt like freedom.

Twin gaps reached Setsuna's ears as beautiful white wings unfurled behind her.

Setsuna said nothing. She did not look at them. She merely waited for their judgment. She waited for the spiteful, disgusted words that were soon to follow. She waited for them tell to her she was-

"Beautiful," Asuna said, touching her wings.

"Eh?"

"They are so pretty," Negi muttered, amazed. "Setsuna-san looks just like an angel."

"Wait!" Setsuna said, backing away from them. That was not the proper reaction at all! "Aren't you angry at me? Aren't you disgusted by me?"

Asuna frowned at her. "What are you talking about, Setsuna?"

"I am a demon!" Setsuna shouted, bringing a hand to her chest. "A half-breed! An outcast! I have been lying to you all this time!"

Asuna had the gall to snort. "Setsuna, we are friends. We don't care about stuff like that."

"Friends..."

Just like that. With a single word, Asuna batted aside all her demons.

The redhead nodded. "Yes, friends don't get angry over stuff like this. Besides, I think you look really cool that way."

Next to her, Negi nodded his head fervently. "Right! There is no way we could hate Setsuna-san."

Whatever Setsuna had been expecting, it was not this. The place where she was born had exiled her. The Kansai Magic Association had treated her with distrust in spite of Eishun-sama's best efforts. Even within the Gods' Cry School, she was not fully accepted.

Yet these two people had fully embraced her without batting an eye.

They liked her wings

They thought her wretched form was beautiful.

Their reaction made her feel… warm. Unbidden, a beautiful smile appeared on her face. It was soon replaced by a determined glint in her eyes. She understood now. Somewhere along the way, the number of people she wanted to protect had grown.

"From the bottom of my heart, I thank you," she said, turning to face the enemy. Fate had not bothered to attack them. He stood still, waiting. It was a challenge and a boast rolled in one. The white-haired boy could afford to give them the first move.

"I will treasure the trust you have given me!" Setsuna proclaimed drawing her sword. "So I will not let you down!"

With that bold declaration, she flew towards Fate. Behind her, Negi readied a spell. Setsuna could feel the way magic gathered in the air. Whatever spell Negi was using, it was not like the previous ones.

Magical seals appeared all around them.

Lightning crashed down around Fate.

No, it didn't just crash down. Lightning emerged from the ground and went up. Lightning appeared a mere yard above the ground, going from left to right and right to left.

It was a cage.

Fate moved. The boy could feel the way magic gathered around him and dodged ahead of time, effortlessly moving through the lightning storm. However, the storm didn't stop, more lightning kept appearing from thin air. Fate kept moving. The boy's finely refined senses and battle experience showed him the safest path through the storm, and Fate did not fail to follow it.

And that was exactly what Negi-sensei had wanted him to do, Setsuna thought as she struck.

Fate's eyes widened by the tiniest fraction as he realized the safest road out of the storm had led him right into the path of the swordswoman's blade. The boy leaned back to avoid the sword strike… and promptly had to switch directions again as he inadvertently moved into the lightning's path.

Setsuna's flying form easily moved through the storm. She was not dodging in the same manner as Fate. Rather, Negi was consciously controlling the lightning to not form where she was. The swordswoman could freely move through the air to attack her landlocked enemy.

Lightning came from below him. Fate moved to the side ahead of time, and immediately ducked, letting Setsuna's blade sail through the air. The boy crouched low and readied his fist to attack only to be forced to dodge to the side as he felt the lightning gather in front of him.

An almost imperceptible drop of sweat rolled down Fate's forehead as he was forced to block a particularly nasty slash from above. He lashed out with a spell only for Setsuna to retreat to the skies and lightning to strike at his side.

The blade flashed. Lightning struck.

The valkyrie danced inside the thunderstorm.

The fight continued in that manner; Negi constantly pushing magical power to keep the lightning spell going, and Setsuna continually pushing Fate.

However, like all dances, it had to end.

Negi fell to his knees panting as the storm dissipated. His body was utterly drenched in sweat. Asuna quickly knelt by his side with a worried look on her face. Setsuna turned to look at him for just an instant.

It was enough for Fate.

The boy closed the distance between them and delivered a devastating kick to her stomach, sending her flying back towards Negi. Asuna barely managed to catch the swordswoman's body as it speeded towards them.

Fate advanced.

Asuna quickly moved in front of her teacher and her classmate, brandishing her artifact. Her eyes shined with determination. It didn't matter that Fate had just beaten the two of them with ease. She had to protect them so she was going to protect them. It was as simple as that.

Determination, however, was quickly replaced by confusion when, out of nowhere, Fate pulled out a pair of shorts and threw them at her. The action was so random, Asuna reflexively caught them, not even thinking it could be a trap.

"Wear them." Fate's command was plain and simple.

"Huh?"

For a moment, Fate looked at her in the same way Negi did when he graded her English tests.

It made her want to punch the little brat, both of them.

"Wear them," Fate repeated. "I was able to see your… taste in underwear when the half-breed dragged you away. Wear them, you vulgar woman. I refuse to fight otherwise."

Had Asuna looked very carefully at Fate, she would have noticed the almost imperceptible blush on his face.

She did not notice it though, because Asuna was quite busy turning a lovely shade of red. It had been bad enough when the demons had pointed out she was not wearing underwear, but a brat of Negi's age…

A brat of Negi's age that was responsible for destroying all her clothes in the first place!

How dare he!

"V-vulgar!" She shouted, finger pointed at him. "You are the reason I have to walk around like this! You destroyed my clothes, you jackass!"

"Yet you found enough time to change all of them but the underwear," Fate said calmly. "Don't blame your fetishes on me."

A sound between an angry growl and a frustrated scream that would have sent a dragon flying in terror left Asuna's mouth.

"I am going to kick your ass now," she said, cracking her knuckles.

"You will try."

xXx

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: And that's another chapter down.
> 
> Last time, I said the next update was going to be what remained of the final chapter of the Kyoto Arc. However, while going through it, I realized that the chapter was going to need a lot of reworking in some areas and that was going to take time.
> 
> So I split it again.
> 
> Which makes this part 2 out of 3.
> 
> Anyway, a couple of things happened this chapter that may leave some readers scratching their heads. I'll address the main ones right now. First of all, Setsuna. While never explicitly shown, Evangeline implies Setsuna wears contacts and dyes her hair, implying she has some form of albinism. This would explain why she has white wings in spite of being part crow demon. I'm taking that theory and running with it.
> 
> Also, yes, Ino did just possess someone while keeping control of her body. By the end of the war, she could already possess two people at once. Possessing one while keeping a part of herself inside her body did not seem like much of a stretch to me.
> 
> Next time, the Kyoto Arc comes to an end!
> 
> For real this time!
> 
> Till next time! Don't forget to review!


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